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RtMn\A/MPn Dl M r-oo ^r- ^ Copyright. 1900, by George W. Bertron. 

KtNUWNED RULERS OF THE CENTURY 



BM(fHM\Mmin!miIIIBlfflmn«lHI«,,n,nn„, 



YOUNG PEOPLE'S 

HISTORY OF THE WORLD 

CONTAINING 

Complete andThrilling Accounts 

OF THE 

Heroes of History 



AND THEIR 



Marvelous Achievements 

INCLUDING 

GREAT BATTLES AND CONQUESTS; THE RISE AND FALL OF NATIONS 

WONDERFUL GROWTH AND PROGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES; 

FAMOUS EXPLORATIONS, DISCOVERIES, ETC., Etc. 

By Henry Davenport Northrop 

Author of "Gem Cyclopedia of Universal Knowledge," "Queen of Republics," Etc., Etc. 



Superbly Embellished with a Great Number of 
Phototype and Line Engravings 



National Publishing Company 

235 to 243 SOUTH AMERICAN ST. 
PHILADELPHIA, PA. 



two Copies rfecBivcii 

JUL 21 1905 
coPt a- 



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feHTERBO *CCO«0.NO TO ACT or COMORES8. .N THB V.A^ 1«<«. BV 

HORACE C. FRY 



M TMB OFFICE OF THE 



LIBRARIAN OF CONGRE88, AT WASHINGTON 



D. C U'l "• *• 



PREFACE. 

(sfX' FUIvL and glowing account of the world's wonderful events is 
^^ contained in this most instructive and entertaining volume, 
embracing whatever in history is sublime and glorious. It 
treats not only of our own great countrj^, but of European and other 
countries, ignorance of which goes far toward branding one as an 
ignoramus. 

It has often been said that the history of Scotland is full of romance. 
Something bright and beautiful, or sanguinary and tragic, is written on 
every page. The very glens echo the heroic deeds of the past. The 
shaded lakes are mirrors of cloud and sky. But this land of ours is 
quite as full of interest as any land beyond the sea, and many are the 
fields that have their tragic tale to tell of heroism and adventure. In the 
great struggle for human freedom we have patriots whose noble deeds are 
themes for splendid epics. 

Great explorations and discoveries are depicted in this volume, and 
the daring men who fought their way through dark regions and terrible 
dangers are commemorated and made immortal. Voyages in the Polar 
world, and thrilling explorations in the Dark Continent, together wath 
journeys in other lands, are here described in a manner so captivating 
that all readers are entranced. There is always a charm about deeds of 
heroism. They rouse the spirit of emulation ; they inspire the young to 
grand effort and achievement ; they live in memory when less noble deeds 
are forgotten, and any volume, put into the hands of the young, that 
fires tliem with aspiration, has a value that cannot be estimated. 

Famous wars and battles are recorded in this very attractive volume. 

It throbs with the struggles of nations, and across its pages \vave the 

tossing plumes of the great battle heroes. Can the world ever forget the 

sri.ci.v.L. iii 



iv PREFACE. 

brilliant career of Napoleon, or Wellington, or Lord Nelson, the hero of 
the sea ? Can the name of onr own great Washington ever cease to adorn 
the pages of history? The conflicts of the Revolution, of the war of 
1812, and the more recent records of grim and ghastly battles — can these 
ever be eliminated from the marvelous story of modern times ? From 
the plains of Austerlitz and Waterloo down to the famous victories of 
Manila, Santiago, and the hard-fought battles in South Africa, the reader 
views the bloody drama of war and hears the booming of guns that pro- 
nounce the downfall of Emperors and Nations. 

We live in an age of wonderful activity, discovery and invention. 
Our young people should be familiar with the amazing progress the world 
is making, and this volume, replete with useful information, is an edu- 
cator that they cannot afford to be without. It is the latest contribution 
to universal knowledge. It deserves a place in every home. And what 
better gift can parents make to the young than to furnish them with 
books that are simply storehouses of learning, and will teach them those 
grand and inspiring lessons that history affords ? 



CONTENTS. 



PART I. 

GREAT EVENTS IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD 

CHAPTER I. 

THE LOUISIANA PURCHASE. 

Purchase of Louisiana— Napoleon Threatening Great Britain — Piratical States 
OF Barbary— Jefferson Re-elected— Treason of Aaron Burr— Blow to Ameri- 
can Commerce— Trouble with Great Britain— Arbitrary Decree of Napoleon 
—Importation of Slaves Forbidden —Robert Fulton's First Steamboat — ^Thf 
"Clermont" Makes a Voyage from New York to Albany — Sailing Vessels 
Superceded by Steam — Fulton the First Great Inventor of the Century . 17 

CHAPTER II. 

OUR SECOND WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 

James Madison in the White House— England's Big Fleet— Gen. Hull Fortifies 
Detroit — Base Surrender of the Detroit Garrison — Sharp Battle at Queens- 
town on THE Canada Border — Brilliant Exploits of Our Navy — Invasion op 
Canada — Important Events Connected with the War — Some of the Indian 
Tribes Take up Arms— The Peace Commission of 1813 — Great American Vic- 
tory ON Lake Champlain— The British Repulsed in Many Engagements— Orig- 
inal Text of the "Star Spangled Banner" — Hartford Convention — War 
Ended — Indiana Brought into the Union 26 

CHAPTER III. 

ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THE MORMONS. 

losEPH Smith, Founder of the Sect — The Book of Mormon— Prominent Mormons 
Swear Falsely — The Book a Historical Romance— Smith Tarred and Feath- 
ered—Removal TO Nauvoo— Smith Shot Dead by a Mob — Mormon Temple Db 
stroyed by Fire— Mormons Move Again and Found Salt Lake City — Outrages 
by Armed Mormons— Mountain Meadows Massacre —Federal Troops Sent to 
Utah -John D. Lee Convicted and Executed for the Mountain Valley Mas- 
sacre-Death OF Brigham Young— Polygamy Suppressed by the Government 42 

CHAPTER IV. 

WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 

People from Connecticut Settle in Texas— Moses Austin Obtains a Grant frov 
the Spanish Government — Large Immigration Pours into Texas— Austin Ar- 
rested and Imprisoned -Santa Anna in Power — His Troops Driven Out of 
Texas— Davy Crockett — Mexican Army Routed— Texas a Republic in 1837 — 
Movement in Congress for the Annexation of Texas — Proposition Resisted 
bv Mexico — Bloody Battles Between the Mexican and American Armies — 
Achievements of General Taylor— General Scott's Expedition— Our Arms 
Everywhere Victorious — Return of Peace on the 4TH of July, 1848 ... 51 



vj CONTENXa 

CHAPTER V. 

THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 

A.GITATION UPON THE QUESTION OP SlAVERV—ThE MISSOURI COMPROMISE — STRUGGLE IN 

Kansas in 1854— Democratic Party Divided— Election of Abraham Lincoln 
TO the Presidency— The South Asserts State Sovereignty— Appalling State 
of Affairs — Many Southern States Secede from the Union— Outbreak of 
THE War — Major Anderson Attacked at Fort Sumter— Confederate Plan to 
Destroy Commerce— First Great Battle— Slaves Declared "Contraband of 
War" — Federal Expeditions to Recapture Southern Harbors— Confederates 
Seek Recognition Abroad— War of Vast Magnitude — General Grant in the 
VVest — Terrible Battles and Many Federal Defeats— Fight Between the 
Merrimac and the Cumberland— " Stonewall Jackson" — General McClellan's 
Advance— The Capital Threatened c . . . 67 

CHAPTER VI. 

END OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 

Hard Fighting in Tennessee— Capture of Fort Pulaski — Slavery Question ai 
the Front— Lincoln Threatens to Free the Slaves— Battles of Chancel- 
lorsville— Grant's Victory at Vicksburg— Federals Victorious in Great Bat- 
tle AT Gettysburg — Riots in New York —Generals Thomas and Bragg — Gen 
ERAL Longstreet Wounded— Grant Made Commander-in-Chief— Terrible Fight- 
ing in the Wilderness— General Sherman's Great March to the Sea — Lincoln 
Elected to a Second Term— Lee's Situation Desperate— End of the Great 
Struggle — Assassination of President Lincoln — Death of the Assassins . 82 

CHAPTER VII. 

FROM THE RESTORATION OF THE UNION TO OUR WAR WITH SPAIN. 

Opening of the Union Pacific Railway — Our Government Insists upon Great 
Britain Allowing Damages for Captures by Confederate Cruisers- Court of 
Arbitration — Great Fire in Chicago — Loss Amounts to 1196,000,000— Discon- 
tent in Cuba — Seizure of the Virginius and Execution of Her Crew— Demands 
OF Our Government upon Spain — Peace Commissioners Murdered by Modoc 
Indians-— Assassins Followed and Shot or Hanged— Centennial Exhibition of 
1876 — Imposing Ceremonies at Its Opening — Garfield Inaugurated President — 
President Garfield Shot by an Assassin — General Arthur Becomes President 
— Discovery of Gold in Alaska— Prosperity in 1898 and Following Years . 01 

CHAPTER VIII. 

THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 

Cuba's Struggle for Freedom — Destruction of the Battleship Maine— Message to 
Congress from the President — Outbreak of War with Spain— Admiral Dewey's 
Great Victory at Manila — Young Heroes of the War — United States Army 
Landed in Cuba — Exploits of the " Rough Riders " — Battles of San Juan and 
El Caney — Admiral Cervera's Fleet Destroyed by American.Squadron Under 
Command of Commodore Schley — United States Army Landed in Porto Rico- 
Capture OF the City of Manila — Peace Commissioners Appointed by the 
United States and Spain— Negotiations for Peace— Peace Treaty Signed by 
THE Two Governments— Bloody Conflicts with the Insurgents in the Philip- 
pines—Great Naval Spectacle in New York Harbor— Sword for Admiral 
Dewky — Magnificent Reception to Dewey on His Return . ...... US 



CONTENTS. Vii 

PART 11. 

EUROPEAN AND OTHER COUNTRIES. 

CHAPTER IX. 

GREAT EVENTS IN ENGLISH HISTORY. 

PAGE 

French Defeated in Egypt— British Naval Victory at Copenhagen— William Pitt 
IN Power, 1804- Napoleon Determines to Invade England— Great Naval Vic- 
tory OF THE English Fleet at Trafalgar— Napoleon's Brilliant Successes- 
Battles of Austerlitz and Jena— The "Iron Doke"— Alliance Against Napo- 
leon—Ireland Independent— George IV. Comes to the Throne— O'Connell in 
Parliament— William IV. on the Throne -Victoria Inaugurated Queen in 1838 
-Anti-Ccrim-Law League— War Between Russia and Allied Armies of England 
AND France— Desperate Struggle in the Crimea— Franchise Extended in 
England— Public School System— Mutiny in India— Punishment of Traitors- 
Struggle OF the Irish for Home Rule— The Queen's Jubilee in 1897 IK 

CHAPTER X. 

FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY 

Splendid Triumphs of Napoleon— His Arbitrary Power— Empire Practically Im- 
CLUDiNG Half of Europe— Defeat of French Navy by Lord Nelson— Emperor 
Retires to Elba— Reappearance in France and Defeat at Waterloo— Charles 
X. on the Throne— Trouble in Algiers— Troops Driven from Paris— Eng- 
land's Bold Move— Death of Heir Apparent in 1842— The King Abdicates— 
France a Republic— President Napoleon III. Afterward Becomes Emperor- 
Political Agitation and Troubles— French and English Alliance Against 
Russia— Fall of Sebastopol— France Sends an Expedition to Mexico -Maxi- 
milian Captured and Shot— Scheme to Annex Belgium— Outbreak of \^^ar with 
Prussia— French Armies Defeated and Downfall of Napoleon III.— Escape op 
Empress Eugenie from Paris— End of the War Famous Dreyfus Trial .... 143 

CHAPTER XI. 

THE NEW GERMAN EMPIRE. 

'.iERMANV Agitated by Napoleon's Schemes at the Beginning of the Century- 
German Confederation— New Government Organized— Insurrection Suppressed 
— Austria and Prussia— War with Austria and Great German Victory — The 
Treatv of Prague — New Territory Incorporated— Union of German States- 
France Proclaims War Against Prussia — Battles of Gravelotte and Sedan — 
Empire of Prussia Under William L— Laws for the Working Classfs— Prussia 
AND THE Papacy— National A"kMY— Death of Emperor William I. — Death of 
Emperor Frederick— William II. Comes to the Throne— Prince Bismarck . . 163 

CHAPTER XII. 

GREAT EVENTS IN THE HISTORY OF RUSSIA. 

Fmperor Paul Murdered in 1801— Russian Loss in the Battle of Austerlitz- Coa- 
lition WITH France— War with Persia — Powerful Alliance — Cabinet Officer 
Charged with Treason — Russia Victorious over Persia — Russia Signs the 
Treaty of London in 1827— Polish Insurrection in 1831— War against Eng- 
land AND France in 1853 — Bloody Battles in the Crimea— Emancipation of 



nil CONTENTS. 

THE Serfs in i86i — Russia Assists Slavonic Christians against the Turks — 
Dismemberment of Bulgaria — Attempts on the Life of the Emperor- Czar. 
Alexander Crowned in 1883 — Emperor of Germany Visits the Czar in 1888 — 
Peace Conference at The Hague in 1899 Called by the Czar of Russia. . . 173 

CHAPTER XIII. 

iAi'IONS OF NORTHERN EUROPE— DENMARK, SWEDEN AND NORWAY. 

Denmark's Wise Ruler— Ascendency of Napoleon— Danish Fleet Surrenders to 
the British — Norway Ceded to Sweden — Monarchy in Danger — Danish Posses- 
sions Defined — Popular Discontent — Conflict with Prussia — Danish Victory 
Followed by Peace with Prussia — Demant^s made upon Denmark — Heroic 
Courage of the Danes -Sweden in the Nineteenth Century — Norway At- 
tacked BY GusTAvus— Finland Ceded to Russia— Sweden and Norway United. IM 

CHAPTER XIV. 

NATIONS OF SOUTHERN EUROPE— ITALY, GREECE, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 

Revolution and Conspiracies in Italy — Massacre in Milan — Mazzini's Attempt tc> 
Establish a Republic in Rome— Revolution a Failure — Garibaldi and His 
Volunteers— Rome Emancipated by the Liberator — United Italy a Great 
Continental Power — Greece in the Nineteenth Century— War for Independ- 
ence IN 1821— Turks Defeated by the Greeks— Civil War — Turkish Fleet An- 
itihilated in 1827 — President Assassinated Iin 1831 — Italy Under Protection 
OF Three Great Powers— War Between Greece and Turkey in 1897 — Turkey 
in the Nineteenth Century — Conflicts with the Greeks — Crete and Syria — 
Turke\ Bankrupt — Massacre of Christians — Demands of the United States 
upon Turkey — Spain in the Nineteenth Century — Revolution in 1820 — Royal 
Marriages— Uprising of the Carlists — Spain a Republic — Spain again a Mon- 
,rchy— War with the United States in 1898 19J 

CHAPTiiR XV. 

CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 

jpPER AND Lower Canada— Internal Dissension in the Early Part of the Century 
— Canadian Rebellion — Defective System of Government — Invasion of Canada 
BY the Fenians — Confederation of 1867— Dominion of Canada — Purchase op 
Territory — Vast Wealth of Moines in British Columbia and Elsewhere— Mexico 
IN the Nineteenth Century — Popular Discontent — Regency Established in 
1822 — President Overthrown— Disorder and Violence — Succession of Revolu- 
tions—The French in Mexico— Execution of Maximilian — South America in 
the Nineteenth Century — History of Peru— History of Chili— United States 
OF Colombia — British Guiana — Bolivia and Argentine Republic 214 

CHAPTER XVi, 

ASIA AND AFRICA IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 

China and Japan— Privileges Granted by Ch^na to British East India Company — 
Famous Opium War — China's Disregard of Treaties - Great Rebellion - Cold 
Blooded Massacre of Europeans — War Between China and Japan— Great 
Hattle of Yalu— Japan in* the Nineteenth Century — The Yankees of the 
'2ast — Admission of Foreign Vessels to Japanese Ports — Radical Changes in 
THE Government -Feudal System Destroyed— Adopting New Ideas— Republics 
IN South Africa — President Kruger and the Transvaal — War Between the 
British anp the Boers ...,-, . 23* 



CONTENTS. ix 

PART III. 

FAMOUS EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES. 

CHAPTER XVII. 
VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 

PAGE 

Captain John Ross — Doctor Rae's Discoveries — Story of Sir John Franklin— Ex- 
pedition Sent for His Relief— Death of Franklin and His Party — Discovery 
of Northwest Passage — Many Expeditions Sent to the Polar World — Doctor 
Kane and Lieutenant DeLong in the North — Captain Nare's Expedition — 
Voyage of Lieutenant Greely — Doctor Nanson in Greenland — Expedition 
BY Lieutenant Peary of the United States Navy — Futile Attempt to Reach 
THE Pole in a Balloon by Andree 247 

CHAPTER XVIII. 
LIVINGSTONE AND STANLEY IN CENTRAL AFRICA. 
Brave Old Missionary— His Start for Zanzibar— Plunges into Wild and Inhospi- 
table Regions— Picturesque African Scenery — An Unbounded Forest — Remark- 
able Travels by Stanley — Adventure with an Elephant — In Dai/ger of a 
Massacre — A Frightened Negro — Great Freshet in the River— Arrival at 
Bagamoyo 265 

CHAPTER XIX. 

STANLEY'S GREAT JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 

How Stanley Found Livingstone— Determines to Explore Africa— First Stage of 
His Journey — Many Adventures — Hostile Natives — Invitation from a King- 
Fantastic Parade — Big War-Boat — Famous TipO'-^ipo —The Terrible Dwarfs — 
Passing THE Rapids— Mutiny in Camp— Deserted by the Guides — Stanley's Ex- 
pedition IN Terrible Straits — His Successful Journey Across Africa— Return 
TO England and the United States — Public Honors for the Great Explorer- 
Feted IN England and America — Remarkable Success of One of the Greatest 
Expeditions on Record 276 

CHAPTER XX. 

TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES OF VAMBERY IN CENTRAL ASIA. 

The Modern Capital of Persia — Shrines of Moslem Saints— Groves of Orange 
AND Lemon Trees— Verdant Plains on Every Side— Caravan in Great Peril — 
The Route Lost— Warm Reception for Vambery— Travelling in a Fertile 
Country— Scarcity of Water— City of Bokhara - A Strange Traveller— Car- 
avan Shut Out of the City — Dazzling Eastern Splendor— The Emirs Parade 
— " Mother of Cities " — The Traveller's Means Exhausted— Welcome from a 
Prince 298 

part IV. 

GREAT WARS AND BATTLES. 

CHAPTER XXI. 

DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 

Extraordinary Military Genius — Immense Array of Forces for a Great Battle 
—Chain of Fortresses on the Belgian Frontier— Wellington in Command of 



content:^ 



f»am 



THE AtLrED Army — Blucher with 80,000 Men — Blucher Attacked and Defeated 
BY Napoleon — The Emperor Decides to Give Battle — Choosing Position for 
THE Great Struggle — Disposition of Troops on Each Side — Armies Face to 
Face— Terrific Cannonade—Disgraceful Panic — Heroic Defense— Charge on 
British Centre— The "Iron Duke" at the Front — Ney's Superb Bravery — 
Veterans Hurled Back — Magnificent Charge of the Old Guard — "Nine 
Deadly Hours" — Waterloo Compared with Gettysburg ..,.,,. ^ ,.■ • 310 

CHAPTER XXII. 

DB.OISIVE BATTLES OF AUSTERLITZ AND JENA. 

Striking Figure of Napoleon— French Host Crosses the Rhine— Guard Driven 
Back — Daring Strategy — An Impregnable Fortress— Setting a Trap — Match- 
less Marshal Murat — Napoleons Strategy -Dashing Cavalry Charge— Rus- 
sians Hurled Back— A Bloody Struggle — Valor was in Vain — Fierce Battle 
OF Jena— Napoleon in the Ranks— Terrific Combat — Two Gallant Charges — 
Scene of Carnage— Thousands of Bloody Swords— Napoleon at Jena — The 
Emperor Caring for the Wounded on the Field 328 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

BRILLIANT VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON 

Famous Battle of Lake Erie — Strong Array of English Ships— Brisk Firing — 
Hand to Hand Combat— Rousing Cheers— Perry Leaving His Ship and Cross 
ing to Another in an Open Boat — British Vessels Trying to Escape — Heavy 
Casualties -Glory for the American Navy — Battle of New Orleans— Formid 
ABLE British Fleet — American Forces Commanded by "Old Hickory" — Bril- 
liant Fighting on Both Sides — British Valor and Fortitude— British Advance 
Slow and Wearisome — Americans Behind Cotton Bales — British Infantry 
Hurled Back— Fatal Errors — A Withering Fire — Desperate Assault by the 
British — Death of the British Commander and Victory for the Americans- 
Battle Fought Before News of Peace Reached the Combatants — ^Jackson the 
Hero of the Hour 352 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

GREAT BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 

Three Days Fight that Turned the Tide of War— General Lee's Successes in 
THE South— Bold Attempt to Invade the North — Two Gallant Commanders — 
General Meade's Plan of Battle— How the Fight Began^Death of the Gal- 
lant Reynolds— Thunder of Artillery— Mad Rush of Federals — Heavy Cav- 
alry Battle— Lee's Hopes Fatally Shattered — Brilliant Repulse of Pickett's 
Brigade — Crisis Battle of the Great Civil War — Lee and the Confederates 
IN Retreat— Union Successes all Along the Line 378 

CHAPTER XXV. 

BATTLE OF INKERMAN AND CAPTURE OF THE MALAKOFF, 

British Pluck and Courage — A Slow Siege— Great Russian Host — Daring Bravery 
of the French Army — Russian Prince on the Field of Conflict Russian CoL' 
umn Shattered— Reserves Brought into Action — Fierce Fighting on Botk 
Sides— Critical Moment of the Battle— Invincible Strength of the Allied 
Forces Heavy Russian Losses — Awaiting the Final Attack - Outpost Taken 
ft.ND Retaken — Fall of the Citadel — One of the Longest Sieges in History 
Ended — Results of the Long-Continued Struggle 390 



CONTENTS. xi 

CHAPTER XXVI. 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE AT SEDAN. 



PACi 



1'hree Armies on the Field - German Host of More Than a Million Men — 
Emperor William and Napoleon III.— Von Moltke's Trap for the Mouse- 
Women IN THE Fight — French Scattered — Fierce Assaults by the Germans — 
A Field of Slaughter — Grand Cavalry Charge— French Hurled Back — Brave 
Marshal McMahon Wounded— White Flag Goes Up — Furious Artillery Fire — 
Meeting OF THE Two Emperors— A Sealed Letter — William to Napoleon — The 
Frenchman's Reply — Loud Huzzas Greet the King— Terms of Surrender — 
Downfall of the French Empire 408 

CHAPTER XXVII. 

AMERICAN VICTORIES IN THE WAR WITH SPAIN. 

Colonel Roosevelt, Assistant Secretary of the Navy — Admiral Dewey Sent to 
Asiatic Waters— American Fleet Sails from Hong Kong — Harbor of Manila 
the Scene of the Great Naval Battle — Relative Strength of the Combat- 
ants—The Battle Opens at Daybreak — Terrible Fire of the American Guns- 
Deadly Aim of' Skilled Artillerymen — Destruction of Admiral Montojo's 
Flagship- Great American Naval Victory — War in Cuba — Military Operations 
Around Santiago — Rough Riders in Battle— Exploits of the Regulars— Brav- 
ery of the Volunteers — Spaniards Driven Back upon Santiago -Admiral Cer- 
VERA Attempts to Escape from the Harbor of Santiago— His Vessels De- 
stroyed — Another Great American Victory 426 

CHAPTER XXVIII. 

WAR BETWEEN THE BRITISH AND THE BOERS. 

Difficulties of Long Standing Between England and the South African Repub- 
lic—War Threatened — Ultimatum of the Boers to Great Britain— Outbreak 
OF Hostilities— Battles in Northern Natal— Capture of General Cronje and 
His Force — British Army at Bloemfontein — A Costly Struggle 435 

CHAPTER XXIX. 

WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND JAPAN. 

Beginning of Hostilities — Movements of the Japanese Fleet — Repulse of the 
Russians— Explosion of a Magazine— Attacks on Port Arthur — A Three Days' 
Battle — Desperate Fighting Immense Losses on Both Sides— Great Battle 
OF LiAU Yang — Frightful Sl.\ughter — Fighting Around Mukden — Results of 
the Battle — Warships Bombarded — Downfall of Port Arthur — Great Suffer- 
ing in the Fortress 437 




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PART I. 
GREAT EVENTS 



IN 



The History of the World. 



CHAPTER I. 
The Louisiana Purchase. 



(*) I HE Revolution, which resulted in 
* I the irdependence of the United 
States, was ended by the sur- 
render of Lord Cornwallis and his army 
of 7,000 men at Yorktown, Va., on Oc- 
tober ipth^ 1 78 1. The patriots who had 
won the great struggle then united their 
efforts in the formation of a new gov- 
ernment and a Constitution in line with 
the principles so boldly asserted in the 
Declaration of Independence. In 1787 
the new Constitution was signed by a 
convention of the States and was ratified 
during the following year. 

The new government was organized 
by the election of George Washington 
as President. As we glance back at 
that stormy period in our history his 
majestic figure stands out as the chief 
of the illustrious founders of our Re- 
public. After twice administering the 
affairs of the government he died De- 
cember 14th, 1799. His honored name, 
embalmed in the hearts of his country- 
men, is destined to be venerated so long 
as our nation endures. One of his distin- 
guished compatriots, Benjamin Frank- 
lin, whose important services form some 
of the brightest pages of our early his- 
tory, ended his illtistrious career on 
April 17th, 1790. 
2 



The administration of John Adams, 
second President, closed on Marcf 4th, 
i8oi, and on the same date he was suc- 
ceeded by Thomas Jefferson, au'^hor of 
the "Immortal Declaration." Aaron 
Burr, regarded by many af only a 
clever adventurer, was indicted into 
the office of Vice-President- The new 
administration made Was)\mgton the 
seat of government, the c^ipitol having 
been removed to that ci"y during the 
preceding year. 

The Purchase of Louisiana. 

The new chief magistrate was soon 
involved in a transaction of very great 
importance. Intelligence was received 
that Napoleon had extorted from Spain 
the cession of Louisiana, granting in 
compensation the succession of the 
Duke of Parma, a Spanish prince, to 
the grand-duchy of Tuscany. That 
court had, however, yielded with much 
reluctance, and only from being over- 
awed by the superior power of France. 
This intelligence excited great alarm 
in the American cabinet. 

The possession of this territory by 
Spain, a weak and sluggish power, had 
been sufficiently harassing; what then 
might be expected on its transference 

27 



18 



ADMINISTRATION OF PRESIDENT JEFFERSON. 



CO the most stirring and active nation 
in Europe? Jefferson, knowing the 
French government to be embarrassed as 
to funds, conceived the hope, that, for 
a large sum, they might be induced to 
part with the territory; and, viewing 
the object as of the deepest importance, 
he was disposed not to be sparing in 
the amount. 

A (jrreat Possession. 

lyivingston, Pinckney, and Monroe 
were appointed a commission for carry- 
ing on this delicate negotiation. On 
arriving at Paris, they found their re- 
publican profession in bad odor with 
Napoleon, who, having determined to 
establish absolute power, regarded them 
with dislike as demagogues and anar- 
chists. They did not scruple to obviate 
this by declaring that they ccnsidered 
the present system the most desirable 
for France after her severe recent agi- 
tations. They found the acquisition of 
Louisiana disapproved in the political 
circles, yet a favorite object with Na- 
poleon himself He looked to it as a 
great colonial possession, which might 
rival those of England ; as a new Egypt 
— a place of reward for meritorious 
officers, and of exile for those he sus- 
pected. 

Mr. King, the ambassador to E:^g- 
land, endeavored to stir that court 
against it ; but though dissatisfaction 
was expressed, no right was there felt 
to interfere. An expedition of five to 
seven thousand men was prepared, and 
Bernadotte appointed to command it. 
As, however, Napoleon began to con- 
template hostile relations with Britain, 
./is mind opened to the American pro- 
posals. He could not hope to maintain 
this transatlantic possession against her 



superior navy ; while a large sum of 
money would be extremely convenient. 
King, indeed, was warned by Mr. Add- 
ington, that the British goverment 
would, in that event, take possession of 
the country. 

This was a new ground of alarm ; 
but he gave assurance, that they sought 
only to keep it from France, and would 
be quite satisfied with its acquisition by 
the United States. As hostilities be- 
came certain, Napoleon began seriously 
to negotiate on the subject. The treaty 
had been opened only with respect to 
New Orleans, and the territory west of 
the Mississippi ; but he intended that 
the eastern must also be included, 
which, indeed, by itself could be of lit- 
tle value to him. This proposal being 
unexpected, the envoys were unpro- 
vided with any instructions ; yet, rightly 
appreciating the great advantage of 
possessing both banks, they readily con- 
sented—a conduct highly approved by 
the President. 

Worth Much More than the Cost. 

After a good deal of discussion, the 
price was fixed at sixty millions of 
francs, 1 2, 500,000 dollars, and the States 
were besides to pay twenty millions of 
francs, 4,000,000 dollars, of indemnity 
for injurious captures ; making in al 
16,500,000 dollars. The sum, though 
considerable, bore little proportion to 
the vast advantages which have since 
been reaped from the acquisition. 

Jefferson, although gratified by this 
arrangement, felt a good deal embar- 
rassed in laying it before Congress. No 
power to conclude such a treaty was con- 
veyed by the Constitution, and he was 
one who specially deprecated the gen- 
eral government going a step beyond its 



ADMINISTRATION OF PRESluiiNT JEFFERSON. 



19 



assigned functions. Congress, however, 
with the exception of a small minority, 
showed too much satisfaction at the 
event to be at all disposed to criticise its 
legality. Spain only, who still held 
possession of tlie country, and had cer- 
tainly been treated with very little cer- 
emony, made a strong remonstrance, 
that she had ceded it under the engage- 
ment of its never being alienated, and 
that the terms even had not been strictly 
fulfilled. She gave in afterwards a sol- 
emn protest to the same efifect. 

The American government turned a 
deaf ear to such representations, and 
even prepared to assert the claim by 
arms. Napoleon, on hearing of this 
dispute, intimated, that unless the 
Spanish government yielded, he would 
join America in compulsory measures. 
This was enough for that court, who, 
on the loth of February, 1804, intima- 
ted, through her minister, Don Pedro 
Cevallos, that her opposition was with- 
drawn. 

American Prisoners at Tripoli. 

Public attention "'as now called to 
another subject, which had long caused 
uneasiness and irritation. The piratical 
states of Barbary, whose career had 
hitherto encountered no serious check, 
had been committing extensive depre- 
dations on American commerce. They 
had even intimated an intention not to 
discontinue them without a tribute, to 
which the nation was little inclined. 
As Tripoli had been particularly active. 
Commodore Preble, in 1803, was sent 
against it with a fleet of seven sail. 

On his arrival, Captain Bainbridge, 
with the frigate Philadelphia, was em- 
ployed to reconnoitre the harbor ; but 
proceeding too far, his vessel grounded, 



and fell into the hands of the enemy. 
He and his crew were made prisoners, 
and treated with the usual barbarity. 

The expedition was thus at a full 
stand, when Captain Eaton, consul at 
Tunis, intimated that the throne of 
Tripoli was disputed by Hamet Cara- 
malli, a brother of the bashaw who had 
found refuge and been well received in 
Egypt. He proposed and was permit- 
ted to join this prince, commanding the 
co-operation of the fleet. Eaton soon 
obtained Hamet's concurrence, and, 
early in 1805, was invested with the 
command of a body of troops which the 
latter had succeeded in raising. 

"My Head or Yours." 

He marched across the desert of Mar- 
morica, summoned tlie frontier fortress 
of Derne, and, though the commander 
made the defying reply, ' ' My head or 
yours," overpowered him after a few 
hours of desperate fighting. On Ma}- 
8th, the reigning bashaw came up with 
a strong force, and attempted to recover 
the place, but was repulsed ; and on 
June loth he sustained another defeat. 
Immediately after, the American fleet 
was reinforced by the frigate Constitu- 
tion. While affairs thus wore a trium- 
phant aspect, and the capital was in 
alarm of immediate attack. Colonel 
Lear, the consul, thought it most pru- 
dent to listen to overtures from the 
enemy and conclude a peace. It com- 
prehended the delivery of the prisoners 
on both sides ; there being a balance of 
two hundred in favor of the bashaw, for 
which sixty thousand dollars were to be 
paid. All co-operation was to be with- 
drawn from Hamet, in whose favor it 
was only stipulated, that his wife anc 
children should be released. 



'20 



ADMINISTRATION OF PRESIDENT JEFFERSON 



That prince made loud complaints, 
under which Jefferson evidently felt 
considerable uneasiness. He urged, in- 
deed, that no pledge had been given for 
his restoration to power ; and that his 
force, though so far successful, was not 
adequate to that achievement. Con- 
certed movements may take place 
against a common enemy without any 
mutual guarantee of each other's ob- 
jects ; yet, where both have effectively 
co-operated, each seemingly may claim 
a share of the advantage ; and that of 
Hamet, on the present occasion, ap- 
peared exceedingly slender. 

Jefferson Re-elected. 

In the end of 1804, Jefferson's first 
term of office expired. His conduct 
having been altogether approved, and 
the democratic spirit being still pre- 
dominant, he was re-elected by one 
lumdred and sixty- two votes out of one 
hundred and seventy-six. Burr, who 
had disgusted the ruling party by his 
conduct at the last election, was thrown 
out, and Clinton of New York, a Dem- 
ocrat so decided that he had even op- 
posed the formation of the Union, was 
elected in his place. ■«^ 

Burr, disappointed in this quarter, 
sought compensation by standing as can- 
didate for governor of New York. He 
was supported by a large body of the 
Federals ; but Hamilton, a man of high 
and honorable mind, despising him as a 
reckless adventurer, opposed and de- 
feated his election. The disappointed 
candidate, taking advantage of some 
violent language said to have been used 
by his opponent, sent him a challenge. 
The parties met, and at the first fire 
Hamilton fell. No event ever excited 
a more general feeling of regret through- 



out the States, where, in the party most 
adverse to him, his high bearing, splen- 
did talents, and political consistency, 
commanded general respect. 

Burr, however, restlessly sought some 
means of attaining distinction and 
power. In September and October, 
1806, Jefferson learned that mysterious 
operations were proceeding along the 
Ohio ; boats preparing, stores of provis- 
ions collecting, and a number of suspi- 
cious characters in movement. A con- 
fidential agent sent to the spot warned 
the President that Burr was the prime 
mover ; and General Wilkinson, who 
commanded near New Orleans, intima- 
ted that propositions of a daring and 
dangerous import had been transmitted 
to him by that personage. 

Burr's Treasonable Plot. 

The ostensible pretext was, the set- 
tlement of a tract of country said to 
have been purchased on the Washita, a 
tributary of the Mississippi ; but the 
various preparations, the engagement 
for six months only, the provision of 
muskets and bayonets, pointed to some- 
thing altogether distinct. It was either 
the formation of the western territory 
into a separate government, or an ex- 
pedition against Mexico, sought to be 
justified by a boundary difference that 
had arisen with Spain, whose troops 
had actually crossed the Sabine. 

The former project, if entertained, 
was given up, no encouragement bein^ 
found in the disposition of the peo- 
ple ; and Burr's views were then con- 
fined to the seizure of New Orleans, and 
collecting there as large a force as pos- 
sible for his ulterior design. His par- 
tisans abstained from all violence, and 
made their designs known only by 



ADMINISTRATION OF PRESIDENT JEFFERSON. 



21 



mysterious conversations ; so that, on 
being apprehended and brought to trial 
in Kentucky, he obtained a verdict of 
acquittal. The governor of Ohio, how- 
ever, seized a quantity of boats and 
stores ; and strict watch was kept along 
the whole line. 

Burr was only able, on the 25tli of 
December, to assemble at the mouth of 
the Cumberland river, from sixty to a 
hundred men, with whom he sailed 
down the Mississippi. General Wilkin- 
son had been instructed to settle the 
Spanish difference as soon as possible, 
and direct all his attention to securing 
New Orleans, and suppressing this ert- 
terprise. Burr, therefore, finding no 
support in the country, was unable to 
resist the force prepared against him ; 
his followers dispersed, and he him- 
self, endeavoring to escape, was arrest- 
ed on his way to Mobile. He was 
tried on a charge of treason ; but 
the chief justice was of opinion that, 
though Blanerhasset, his coadjutor, had 
openly announced the project of at- 
tempting the separation of the States, 
there was not sufficient proof that 
Burr himself contemplated more than 
the Mexican expedition, which amount- 
ed only to the levying of war against 
a power with whom the country was 
at peace. 

Believed to be Guilty. 

He was thus acquitted of the main 
charge ; yet Jefferson expressed himself 
as much dissatisfied with the sentence, 
declaring his conviction of Burr's guilt 
in every particular. The acquittal ap- 
peared to him to have been prompted 
by that ultra-federal spirit with which 
he always charged the Supreme Court. 
Bnrr went to Europe, and never again 



appeared on the political theatre of the 
States. 

About this time arose discussions 
that led to a long series of troubles. 
The contest which had arisen between 
France and England spread over the 
Continent, and was attended, on the 
part of Napoleon, with such signal tri- 
umphs, as rendered him virtually its 
master. But, while all Europe bent 
beneath his sway, he was goaded to 
madness by seeing Britain stand erect 
and defiant, while not a vessel could 
leave one of his own ports withou* 
almost a certainty of capture. 

A struggle now ensued, very different 
from that hitherto waged between Euro- 
pean kingdoms, when some exterior 
provinces or appendages only w^re dis 
puted. It was a question of empire on 
one side and existence on the other ; 
and each party thought itself entitled 
to employ extreme means, and to pass 
the limits hitherto sanctioned by the 
practice and public law of Europe. 

Struggle Between Giants. 

Napoleon, viewing his mighty rival 
as resting solely upon commerce, imag 
ined, that if he could exclude her mer- 
chandise entirely from the Continent, 
the root of her power would wither, 
and she would fall an easy victim. His 
adversary, on the other hand, conceived 
the hope, that by depriving the coun 
tries under his sway of all the benefits 
of trade, a spirit of discontent would be 
roused that might prove fatal to his 
dominion. Both parties inflicted on 
themselves and on each other severe 
sufferings ; and the hopes of both proved 
finally abortive. Britain remained mis- 
tress of the seas, and Europe still lay at 
tlie feet of Napoleon. Yet each uerse- 



22 



ADMINISTRATION OF PRESIDENT JEFFERSON. 



vered, in the hope that the desired 
result was in silent operation, and that 
by a continuance of effective means it 
tnight at last arrive. 

America had at first derived extraor- 
Jinary advantages from this warlike 
attitude of Europe. The most active, 
and finally almost the only maritime 
neutral power, she had reaped a rich 
harvest by engaging in the commerce 
between the ports of the belligerent 
states, and kept an extensive shipping 
employed in this carrying trade. 

Blow at American Commerce , 

But a severe reverse was felt under 
these new measures, when her vessels 
could not appear in any of the seas of [ 
Europe without being liable to capture 
by one nation or the other. The proc- 
lamations ofboth were equally rigorous ; 
but Britain possessed so much more 
means of carrying hers into execution, 
that they were the most severely felt. 

Another grievance was endured from 
the same quarter. The great extension 
of the American shipping interest of- 
fered ample employment to British sea- 
men, who, by entering this service, 
obtained higher wages and escaped the 
hardship of serving by impressment in 
ships of war. Britain therefore claimed 
and exercised the right of searching 
American vessels for these deserters, 
and, whenever grounds of suspicion ap- 
peared, of calling upon them for proofs 
of American origin. She contended 
that the desertion, if unchecked, would 
proceed on so vast a scale, that the navy, 
her grand means of defence, would be 
entirely crippled. 

The other party complained, that not 
only was the national flag thus violated, 
but American citizens were, under this 



pretext, seized and carried to distanl 
ports, where they could not procure 
proofs of their origin, and those ac 
tually produced were not duly regarded. 
In a report to Congress, it is stated, 
that the number impressed since the 
beginning of the war had been four 
thousand two hundred and twenty- 
eight, of whom nine hundred and 
thirty-six had been discharged. It was 
alleged, that by far the greater propor- 
tion of these were native Americans, 
and that in six hundred and ninety- 
seven recent cases, only twenty-three 
were British and one hundred and five 
doubtful ; but to these statements it 
seems impossible not to demur. 

The first encroachment on the liberty 
of commerce was directed against the 
transportation of the produce of the 
French West Indies to the mother 
country. 

Trouble with Great Britain. 

It was maintained by Britain, that 
the Americans, having been formerly 
excluded from this employment, and 
admitted to it only in consequence of 
the war, could not complain of losing 
a branch which they had never enjoyed : 
while they urged, that the war had 
conferred on Britain no new right to 
interpose. They entertained hopes of 
gaining their object in consequence of 
Mr. Fox's accession to power, in 1806. 
That statesman even told Monroe, 
then ambassador, that he had ordered' 
the practice of impressment to be sus- 
pended, but was not prepared to yield 
up the right. 

Jefferson, encouraged by this intelli- 
gence, added Pinckney to the embassy, 
with the view of concluding a final 
arrangement. On his arrival, however, 



ADMINISTRATION OF PRESIDENT JEFFERSON. 



23 



Fox had been siezed with that illness 
which terminated in his death. The 
commission were received by Lord 
Grenville, to whom the subject was 
new, and who was pressed by the duties 
of other departments. Soon however, 
lyords Holland and Auckland, being 
named commissioners to carry on 
the negotiations, expressed the most 
conciliatory disposition, but stated, 
that as all the law oflEicers were in favor 
of the right of impressment, it could 
not be formally conceded, but would be 
exercised with greatest caution. 

Agreed to Sign the Treaty. 

The Americans finding more was 
unattainable, while terms that appeared 
satisfactory could be secured on other 
subjects, at length agreed to sign the 
treaty. On its being transmitted to Jef- 
ferson, however, he at once determined 
on refusing to ratify it, without even 
the usual course of submitting it to the 
Senate. This, he conceived, when his 
own mind was completely made up, 
would have been an empty form. He, 
therefore, sent it back, with instructions 
that an attempt should be made to ob- 
tain at least a partial abolition, and also 
stating modifications which he consid- 
ered necessary in several of the other ar- 
ticles. He continued the same negoti- 
ators, and did everything in his power 
to soothe Monroe, hitherto his favorite 
diplomatist, who could but feel deeply 
wounded on this occasion. 

The estrangement caused by this step 
was aggravated by a tragical incident. 
Admiral Berkeley, then commanding 
British vessels on our coast, having 
learned that several men belonging to 
his squadron were on board the United 
States frigate Chesapeake, gave direc- 



tions for their seizure by Captain 
Humphreys, of the Leopard. That 
officer came up to the American vessel 
soon after it had sailed from Hampton 
Roads, Virginia, and sent a boat's crew 
on board, asking permission to search 
for the British deserters ; Barron, the 
commander, replied, that he could not 
allow his men to be mustered by any 
other than himself The boat returned, 
when a fire was opened from the Leop- 
ard, which the American, being totally 
unprepared for, was unable to return. 
In the course of twenty or thirty min- 
utes, he endeavored to fit his vessel for 
action, but not having succeeded, and 
three of his men being killed and 
eighteen wounded, he struck his flag. 

Offered to Give up his Ship. 

To a British officer, who came on 
board, he offered his vessel as a prize ; 
but the other disclaimed any such view, 
and delived a letter from Humphreys, 
deploring a loss which might have been 
avoided by amicable adjustment. He 
then took out four men, three of whom 
were alleged to be Americans, and de- 
parted. Berkeley had committed a gross 
error in authorizing such a proceeding 
against a government armed vessel, re- 
specting which the right of search had 
never been claimed. A loud and general 
clamor, in which all parties joined, was 
raised throughout the country ; and 
Jeflferson issued a proclamation, exclud- 
ing British ships of war from all the 
waters of the United States. 

The English foreign secretary disa- 
vowed the action of Captain Humplireys 
offered reparation, and recalled Admiral 
Berkeley. England, however, would 
not give up the right of search, but 
instructed her officers to use no unnec- 



24 



ADMINISTRATION OF PRESIDENT JEFFERSON. 



essary violence in enforcing it. The 
reparation promised was never made. 

Affairs in Europe, meantime, were 
assuming a still more serious aspect. 
Napoleon, after his victory at Jena, and 
entry into Berlin, which placed him in 
a most triumphant position on the con- 
tinent, became still more eager to crush 
the only power that still defied him. 
In November, 1 806, he issued a decree, 
declaring the British isles in a state of 
blockade ; this was retalliated by . an 
order in council on January 2, 1807, 
prohibiting the trade by neutrals from 
any port under his sway to another. 

Napoleon Enraged. 

On the nth of November, a fresh 
order declared, that all these countries 
were to be considered in a state of block- 
ade ; but some mitigations were after- 
wards admitted in regard to vessels 
willing to trade through the British 
ports, after paying a certain duty. 
These terms, however, were repelled by 
America, as a levying of tribute, and as 
altogether inconsistent with the inde- 
pendence of her flag. Enraged at this 
farther measure. Napoleon, on Decem- 
ber 17, 1807, issued at Milan, another 
decree, subjecting to confiscation every 
vessel which should have submitted to 
the conditions imposed by England. 

America was thus placed certainly in 
a hard situation, being unable to send 
out a vessel to sea, which was not liable 
to capture by either belligerent. She 
might have been fully justified in im- 
posing severe restrictions on the ship- 
ping and commerce of the offending 
parties ; but instead of this, Jefferson 
proposed and was supported by his 
part}' in carrying the measure of an em- 
bargo, to be laid for an indefinite period 



on all our vessels within the ports of 
America, by which they were prohib- 
ited from departing for any foreign 
port. 

This step was marked by the singular 
fact that it was carried by the interior 
and agricultural States, against the most 
violent opposition from the northern 
and commercial ones, though the latter 
were almost the exclusive sufferers. 
They were told, indeed, that the object 
was to procure for them redress, and 
that their vessels, thus detained in port, 
would be saved from capture and con- 
fiscation. They thought, however, that 
they might have been consulted as to 
their own interests, and not have had a 
remedy imposed which was deemed by 
them ten times worse than the evil. 
The embargo was repealed in 1809, but 
commercial intercourse was forbidden 
with England and France. 

Slave Trade Abolished. 

Besides the acquisition of the great 
Louisiana territory, Mr. Jefferson's ad- 
ministration is memorable for the ex- 
tinction of the African slave trade, the 
importation of slaves having been for- 
bidden bylaw in 1808. The policy was 
then first introduced of purchasing from 
the diminishing Indian tribes the lands 
which they claimed, and removing the 
Indians to special districts, or " reserva- 
tions," set apart for them. In this way 
large tracts of territory were gained from 
the scattered tribes both north and south 
of the Ohio. 

Thus it will be seen that within a 
period of twenty-five years from the 
close of the Revolutionary War our 
country was again agitated and dis- 
turbed, and there were ominous mutter- 
ings of war both England and with 



ADMINISTRATION OF PRESIDENT JEFFERSON. 



25 



Fiance Mr, Jefiferson, who was not 
without suspicion of sometimes favoring 
measures for political eflfect, resisted 
with all the powerful resources of his 
mind and with his commanding influ- 
ence the aggressions of Great Britain. 
From the succeeding pages the reader 
will learn that the statements already 
made are but preliminary to the second 



present, iSlever did a flag have more 
enthusiastic or ardent defenders than 
the Stars and Stripes. 

In the year 1807 a great change was 
made in the system of navigation by 
Robert Fulton, a native of Pennsylva- 
nia, who built and successfully uaviga- 
ted the first steamboat. He named it 
the " Clermont," and made the voyage 




ROBE;rT FULTON'S 

conflict between the United States and 
Great Britain. A people who at such sac- 
rifice and cost of blood had gained their 
independence were not in a mood to tol- 
erate any violation of their lawful rights. 
it should be noted that in the early 
period of our history the true American 
spirit was born — born in conflict and 
the shock of battle — and has character- 
ized our nation from that time to the 



FIRST STEAMBOAT. 

from New York to Albany, a distance 
of about one hundred and fifty miles, in 
thirty-six hours. From this time steam 
navigation rapidly superseded the old 
system of sailing vessels in the waters 
of the United States and exercised a 
powerful influence in the development 
of the wealth and prosperity of the 
country. Fulton's was the first great 
invention of the century. 



CHAPTER II. 



Our Second War with Great Britain. 



(5 I HE most important events in our 
* I country's history during the 
early part of the century were 
connected with what is commonly called 
the war of 18 12. James Madison, hav- 
ing served one term as President, was 
inaugurated for a second term on the 
4th of March, 181 3. War against Great 
Britain had been declared on the i8th 
of June before, and was then going on. 
At the time the war was declared, the 
prevailing idea was that England was to 
be brought to terms by the seizure of her 
neighboring provinces on the northern 
boundary of the United States. This 
was the only vital point at which it was 
expected that the United States could 
deal telling blows. I^ittle or nothing 
was expected from any contest on the 
ocean. The United States navy, of less 
than thirty frigates and sloops-of-war 
in commission, even with the new ad- 
ditions ordered, could not, it was sup- 
posed, cope with England's fleets of a 
thousand sail. All that was expected 
of these was to aid the gun-boats in 
coast defence, and in preventing a land 
invasion; while they might, also, in 
conjunction with privateers put in com- 
mission, cripple the enemy to some ex- 
tent by the destruction of their com- 
merce on the high seas. 

But the capture of the Canadas was 
looked upon as an easy prize. It was 
with this view that the army was organ- 
ized, and active preparations made. 
The chief command of all the forces 
was assigned to General Henry Dear- 
born, of Massachusetts. His position 
was to be on the eastern end of the line ; 
26 



the forces on the west end were assigned 
to General William Hull, then Gover-, 
nor of Michigan ; those in the centre, 
or middle, of the line, were assigned to 
General Stephen Van Renssalaer. They 
were all to co-operate in their move- 
ments, with a view to Montreal as an 
ultimate objective point. 

Detroit Fortified. 

On this line of policy. General Hull 
had, early in July, 181 2, concentrated 
an army of about 2,500 at Detroit. On 
the 1 2th of that month he crossed over 
and took possession of the village of 
Sandwich. Here he issued a very 
famous proclamation, and remained un- 
til the 8th of August, when upon hear- 
ing that Fort Mackinaw, on the river 
above Detroit, had been taken by the 
British and Indians, he recrossed the 
river and again took position at Detroit. 
A few days after this. General Brock, 
Governor of Upper Canada, who had 
called out a force, took his position at 
Maiden. On the 15th of August he 
erected batteries on the opposite side of 
the river, but in such position as to 
bring the town of Detroit within the 
range of his guns, and demanded of 
Hull a surrender of the place. 

Colonel McArthur and Colonel Lewis 
Cass had been sent off on detached ser- 
vice, with a small force, on the river 
Raisin, a few days before, by Genera] 
Hull. Captain Bush, of the Ohio vol- 
unteers, had also, with a small force, 
been sent off on similar detached ser- 
vice. These detachments were recalled 
by (^eueral Hull on the 15th. Qn the 



OUR SECOND WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN 



27 



i6th General Brock commenced cross- 
ing the river with his forces, three miles 
below the position occupied by General 
Hull. 

When the British had advanced with- 
in about five hundred yards of Hull's 
line, to their surprise they saw the dis- 
play of a white flag. An officer rode 
up to inquire the cause. It was a sig- 
nal for a parley. A correspondence was 
opened between the commanding gen- 
erals, which speedily terminated in a 
capitulation on the part of Hull. The 
fortress of Detroit, with the garrisons 
and munitions of war, were surren- 
dered. The forces under Cass and Mc- 
Arthur, and other troops at the river 
Raisin, were included in the surrender. 
Captain Bush, however, not consider- 
ing himself bound by Hull's engage- 
ment, broke up his camp and retreated 
towards Ohio. 

A Base Surrender. 

The army surrendered by General 
Hull amounted to 2,500 men. General 
Brock's entire command consisted of 
about 700 British and Canadians, with 
600 Indians. This unaccountable con- 
duct of Hull filled the whole country 
with indignation. As soon as he was 
exchanged, he was brought to trial by 
court-martial. He was charged with 
treason, cowardice, and neglect of duty, 
but found guilty only of the two latter 
charges. He was sentenced to be shot, 
but his life was spared in consideration 
of gallant services in his younger days. 

By the surrender of Hull, the whole 
Northwestern frontier was exposed, not 
only to British invasion, but Indian 
depredations of the most savage char- 
acter. Great alarm spread throughout 
*U the neighboring States. Not less 



than ten thousand volunteers tendered 
their services to the government for 
defence. These were accepted and 
placed under command of General Wil- 
liam Henry Harrison, who had suc- 
ceeded Hull. 

Battle of Queenstown. 

After Hull's disaster. General Van 
Rensselaer, who had command, accord- 
ing to the original plan, of the centre of 
the invading line, made a movement 
over the Canada border. His forces 
consisted of regulars and militia, and 
were assembled at Lewistown, on the 
Niagara river. On the opposite side 
was Queenstown, a fortified British post. 
This was the first object of his attack. 
On the 13th of October, he sent a de- 
tachment of a thousand men over the 
river, who succeeded in landing under 
a heavy fire from the British. The 
troops were led to the assault of the 
fortress by Colonels Christie and Scott. 

They succeeded in capturing it. Gen- 
eral Brock came up with a reinforcement 
of six hundred men, and made a desper- 
ate effort to regain the fort, but was de- 
feated, and lost his life in the engage- 
ment. General Van Rensselaer was now 
at Queenstown, and returned to carry 
over reinforcements, but his troops re- 
fused to obey the order. Soon after, 
another British reinforcement was ral- 
lied, which recaptured the fort after a 
bloody engagement, in which the greater 
part of the thousand men who had first 
taken it were killed. General Van 
Rensselaer immediately resigned. 

The command of the army of the 
centre was then assigned to General 
Alexander Smyth. He was soon at the 
head of an army of four thousand five 
hundred men. On the 28th of No- 



28 



OUR SECOND WAR WirH GREAT BRITAIN. 



vember he was ready to move. That 
was the day fixed for crossing the river. 
The troops were embarked, but the 
enemy appearing on the opposite side 
in considerable force and battle array, a 
council of war was held, which resulted 
in a recall of the troops in motion, and 
a postponement of the enterprise till the 
ist of December. On that day another 
council of war was held, at which the 
invasion from that quarter was indefi- 
nitely postponed. General Smyth in 
turn immediately resigned. So ended 
the third and last attempt at an inva- 
sion of Canada, during the fall and 
winter of 1812. 

Exploits of the Navy. 

While the military operations on land, 
from which so much had been expected, 
bore so gloomy an aspect, quite as much 
to the surprise as to the joy of the coun- 
try, the exploits of the gallant little 
navy, in its operations on sea, from 
which very little had been looked for 
or hoped for, were sending in the most 
cheering tidings. 

These may be thus stated : First. — 
On the 19th of August, 181 2, three days 
after the disastrous surrender of Detroit 
by General William Hull, of the army, 
a most brilliant victory was achieved off 
the Gulf of St. I/awrence, by Captain 
Isaac Hull, of the Uni.ted States frigate 
Constitution, and coming up with the 
British man-of-war Guerriere, under the 
command of Captain Dacres, at the time 
and place stated, an engagement imme- 
diately ensued. The fight was a des- 
perate one, and lasted for some time. 
But the result was the triumph of Hull 
and his gallant men. Dacres surren- 
dered ; but the Guerriere was too much 
disabled to be brought into port, and 



was blown up at sea. The loss of the 
Constitution in men was seven killed 
and seven wounded ; the loss of the 
Guerriere was fifty killed and sixty-four 
wounded ; among the latter was Cap- 
tain Dacres himself 

About the same time. Captain Porter, 
in command of the United States fri- 
gate Essex, met and captured the Brit- 
ish sloop-of-war Alert, after an action of 
only eight minutes. 

Second. On the i8th of October, 
Captain Jones, in command of the Uni- 
ted States sloop-of-war Wasp, of eigh- 
teen guns, met and captured the British 
sloop-of-war Frolic, of twenty-two guns, 
after a hard-fought battle of forty-five 
minutes, losing but eight men, while 
the loss of his enemy, in a vessel one- 
third his superior, was eighty men. 

Capture of a British Frigate. 

Third. On the 25tli of October, Cap- 
tain Decatur, in command of the frigate 
United States, of forty-four guns, met 
and captured the British frigate Mace- 
donian, mounting forty-nine guns and 
manned by three hundred men. The 
action continued an hour and a half. 
The loss of the Macedonian was thirty- 
six killed and sixty-eight wounded; 
while the loss on the United States was 
only seven killed and five wounded. 
The Macedonian was brought into New 
York, and the gallant Decatur, who, 
when lieutenant, had so signally dis- 
tinguished himself at Tripoli, was wel- 
comed with the applause and honors 
which he had so nobly won. 

Fottrth. 0\\ the 29th of December 
the Constitution, familiarly called by 
the sailors Old Ironsides, then in com- 
mand of Commodore Bainbridge, had 
another encounter at sea. This was 




88 



30 



OUR *^ECOND WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 



with the British frigate Java, of thirty- 
eight guns. The action was fought off 
San Salvador, and lasted three hours. 
The Java was dismasted and reduced to 
a wreck, losing one hundred and sixty- 
one killed and wounded, while the loss 
of the Constitution in killed and 
wounded was but thirty-four. 

Fifth. In addition to these victories 
of the public vessels, United States 
privateers, fitted out under letters of 



to the time of Mr. Madison's inaugu- 
ration for a second Presidential term. 
Soon after this, on the 8th of March, 
1813, the Russian Minister at Washing- 
ton, Mr. Daschcoff, communicated to 
the President of the United States an 
offer from the Emperor Alexander oni 
his mediation between the United 
States and Great Britain, with a view 
to bring about peace between them. 
Mr. Madison promptly and formally 




marque, succeeded in severely distress- 
ing the enemy's commerce, capturing 
about five hundred of their merchant- 
men and taking three thousand prison- 
ers during the first seven months of the 
war. England, as Napoleon had pre- 
dicted, had found an enemy which was 
ably contesting her supremacy as mis- 
tress of the sea. 

Such was the aspect of afi'airs on 
land and sea in the progress of war un 



THE WASP HOARDING THE FROLIC. 

accepted the Russian mediation, and 
appointed Mr. Gallatin, John Qnincv 
Adams and James A. Bayard, commis- 
sioners to negotiate a treaty of peacf 
with Great Britain, under the auspices 
of the tendered mediation. Messrs. 
Gallatin and Bayard soon set out on 
the mission to join Mr. Adams at St. 
Petersburg, where he was then resident 
Minister of the United States. The 
British Government declined the medi- 



OUR SECOND WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 



31 



ation, and nothing came of this com- 
mission. 

The first session of the Thirteenth 
"Congress met on the 24th of May, 181 3. 
The principal business of this Congress 
was to provide means to carry on the 
war and sustain the public credit. 
Direct taxes and excises were again re- 
sorted to. The expenditures of the 
v/ar had greatly exceeded the estimates. 
New loans had to be made and pro- 
vided for. The public finances were 
in a state of much embarrassment; 
treasury notes issued according to act 
of Congress were at a great discount; 
the loans authorized by the Govern- 
ment were paid in depreciated currency ; 
all the banks in the Union had sus 
pended specie payments, except some 
in the New England States. Proper 
arms and clothing for the militia when 
called into the field were both wanting. 
Already the war spirit was beginning 
to abate in several quarters, especially 
in New England. 

Canada Invaded. 

Still the invasion of Canada was the 
leading object of the administration. 
The campaign planned for this purpose 
in 18 1 3 was similar to that of 18 12. 
The operations extended along the 
whole northern frontier of the United 
States. The army of the West, under 
General Harrison, was stationed at the 
head of Lake Erie; that at the east 
end of the line, under the command of 
General Hampton, on the shore of Lake 
Champlain; while that of the centre, 
under Dearborn, the commander-in- 
chief, was placed between the Lakes 
Ontario and Erie. 

The result of this campaign, in view 
of its main object, the conquest of 



Canada, was very little more successful 
than that of the year before. There 
were many movements and counter- 
movements of forces, advances, retreats 
and sieges, with some pitched battles, 
in which great valor was displayed, but 
no one of them was attended with any 
decisive results. 

Noted Events. 

The most noted events of this cam- 
paign may be thus briefly stated : First. 
^\\^ slaughter of the United States 
prisoners at French town, in Canada, on 
the 22nd of January, 181 3. Colonel 
Proctor, the British officer to whom 
General Winchester had surrendered a 
force of several hundred men, in viola- 
tion of his pledge, turned the prisoners 
over to the vengeance of the Indians; 
or at least did not restrain his allies, 
the savages, in their most atrocious 
acts of barbarity upon their unarmed 
victims. 

Second. The battle of York, or To- 
ronto, in Upper Canada, on the 27th of 
April, in which the young and gallant 
United States officer. General Zebulon 
M. Pike, was killed. He expired in 
the hour of victory. TJiird. The siege 
of Fort Meigs by Proctor, and its suc- 
cessful defence by Harrison in the 
month of May. Fourth. The subse- 
quent siege of Fort Sandusky by Proctor 
in the same month, and its like gallant 
defence by Major Croghan. Fifth. The 
battle of Sackett's Harbor on the 29th 
of May, in which the British General 
Prevost was signally repulsed. Sixth. 
The capture on the same day of the 
British Fort George by the United 
States troops. Ser'enth. The battle of 
Lake Erie, fought on the loth of Sep- 
tember. This was a naval engage- 



32 



OUR SECOND WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 



ment, planned and executed by Com- 
modore Perry. Its results stand briefly 
chronicled in his report of it to General 
Harrison in these words : "We have 
met the enemy, and they are ours ! — 
two ships, two brigs, one schooner and 
one sloop." 

Eighth. The battle of the Thames, 
as it is called, fought by Harrison on 
the 5th of October, and in which he 
gained a complete victory. It was in 
this battle that the famous Indian war- 
rior Tecumseh was killed by the hands 
of Colonel R. M. Johnson, of Ken- 
tucky. Soon after this General Harri- 
son resigned his commission and re- 
tired from the service. General Dear- 
born had previously resigned, when the 
chief command had been conferred 
upon General James Wilkinson. 

Indians in Arms. 

Meanwhile the Creek Indians in Geor- 
gia and Alabania had taken up arms. 
On the 30th of August they had sur- 
prised Fort Minis on the Chattahoochee 
river, and massacred nearly three hun- 
dred persons, men, women and children. 
The militia of Georgia and Tennessee 
were called out. Those of Georgia were 
under the command of General John 
Floyd ; the whole were under the direc- 
tion of Andrew Jackson, of Tennessee, 
with the commission of Major- General. 
Floyd had two engagements with the 
enemy ; one at Callabee, the other at 
Autossee. Both were successful. The 
Indian town of Autossee was burned by 
him on the 29th of November. A de- 
tachment of the Tennessee forces, under 
General Coffee, had an engagement at 
Tallusahatchee on the 3d of November, 
in which two hundred Indians were 
killed. His success was complete. On 



the 8th of November the battle of Tal- 
ladega was foyght under the immediate 
direction of Jackson himself. This was 
another complete victory. 

Completely Defeated. 

Soon after, another fight was had at 
Emuckfau, with a like result. The 
Indians rallied again, and made their 
last stand at a place known as " The 
Horseshoe Bend," or, as they called it, 
" Tohopeka," on the Tallapoosa river. 
Here they were completel}' crushed by 
Jackson in his great victory of the 27tli 
of March following. A treaty of peace 
with them was soon after made. The 
speech of their chief warrior and prophet 
Witherford, on the occasion of his sur- 
render to General Jackson, and as re- 
ported by him at the time, der-^^rves 
perpetuation. 

"I am," said he, "in your power. 
Do with me as you please. [ am a sol- 
dier. I have done the white people all 
the harm I could. I have fought them, 
and fought them bravely. If I had an 
army, I would yet fight, and crjutend to 
the last. But I have none. My people 
are all gone. I can now do no more than 
weep over the misfortunes of my nation. 
Once I could animate my warriors to 
battle ; but I cannot animate the dead. 
My warriors can no longer hear my 
voice. Their bones are at Talladega, 
Tallusahatchee, Emuckfau, and Toho- 
peka. I have not surrendered myself 
thoughtlessly. Whilst there were any 
chances for success, I never left my post, 
nor supplicated peace. But my people 
are gone ; and I now ask it for my na- 
tion and for myself." 

The operations on the sea in 18 13 
continued, upon the whole, to add lustre 
to the infant navy of the United States. 



34 



OUR SECOND WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 



The most noted of these, the successful 
as well as the adverse, were as follows : 
First. Captain lyawrence, of the 
United States sloop-of-war Hornet, 
on the 24th of February, met and cap- 
tured the British brig Peacock, in a 
conflict that lasted only fifteen minutes. 
The Peacock, in striking her colors, 
displayed, at the same time, a signal of 
distress. Captain Lawrence made the 
greatest exertions to save her crew, but 
she went down before all of them could 
be gotten off, carrying with her three 
brave and generous United States sea- 
men, who were extending their aid. 

A Famous Victory. 

Second. On the ist of June, the British 
frigate Shannon captured the United 
States frigate Chesapeake. The 
Chesapeake at this time was in the 
command of Lawrence. Every officer 
on board of her was eitlier killed or 
wounded. Lawrence, as he was carried 
below, weltering in blood, and just 
before expiring, issued his last heroic 
order — " Don'' t give up the ship J- ' But 
the fortunes of battle decided otherwise. 

Third. The British met another like 
success on the 14th of August, in the 
capture of the United States brig 
Argus, by the Pelican. The 

Argus had carried Mr. Crawford, 
United States Minister, to France, in the 
month of May ; after which she made a 
orilliant cruise, capturing more than 
twenty of the enemy's ships, when she 
was in turn captured, as stated. Her 
colors, however, were not struck in 
her last engagement, until Captain 
Allen, in command, had fallen mortally 
wounded. 

Fourth. In September the United 
States brig Enterprise met the 



British brig Boxer, on the coast ti 
Maine, and after an engagement of foi ty 
minutes the Boxer surrendered. The 
commanders of both vessels fell in the 
action, and were buried beside each 
other in Portland, with military honors. 

Fifth. During the summer Commo- 
dore Porter, of the frigate Essex 
after making many captures of British 
merchantmen in the Atlantic, visited 
the Pacific ocean, where he was no less 
signally successful. 

Sixth. During the same summer, 
British fleets entered the waters of the 
Delaware and Chesapeake bays, under 
the command of Admiral George Cock- 
burn. All small merchant ships within 
their reach were destroyed, and much 
damage done to many of the towns on 
the coast. Frenchtown, Georgetown, 
Havre de Grace and Fredericktown 
were burned. An attack was made 
upon Norfolk, which was repulsed with 
heavy loss. After committing many 
barbarities at Hampton, Cock burn, with 
his command, sailed south All the 
ports north, to the limits of the New 
England coast, were kept in close 
blockade. 

Peace Commission 

During the session of the Congress, 
which convened in December, 1813, a 
communication was received from the 
British government, of the purport that, 
although they had declined to treat 
under the mediation of Russia, yet they 
were willing to enter into direct nego- 
tiations either in London or Gotten- 
burg. The offer was immediately ac- 
ceded to, and the latter place appointed 
for the meeting. Henry Clay and Jona- 
than Russell were added to the Com- 
missioners who had already been sent 



OUR SECOND WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 



35 



to Europe, The place of meeting was 
afterwards changed from Gottenburg 
to Ghent. 

The country at this time was feeling 
sorely the ills of war everywhere. New 
loans had to be made; increased taxes 
had to be levied ; more troops had to 
be raised. The conquest of Canada 
was still the chief object of the admin- 
istration. 

Events of the Campaign. 

The plan of the campaign of 1814 
was projected by General Armstrong, 
the Secretary of War. The Depart- 
ment of War was temporarily removed 
to the frontier, and established at the 
headquarters of the army on the Canada 
line. The operations in chis quarter 
during this year, as those of 181 3, were 
attended with many marches and coun- 
ter-marches, and much gallant fighting 
on both sides, but without any decisive 
results on either. The most noted 
events connected '^dth them may be 
thus summed u^ 

First. The advance of Wilkinson 
into Canada commenced in March, and 
ended with the affair at La Cole Mill, 
on the 31st of that month, in which he 
was defeated with heavy loss. Soon 
after this he was superseded, and the 
chief command given to General Izard. 

Second. The battle of Chippewa, 
which was fought on the 5 th of July 
by General Brown, and in which the 
United States forces won the day. 

Third. The battle of Bridgewater, 
or Lundy's Lane, which was fought on 
the 25 th of July. It was here that 
Colonel Winfield Scott, in command 
of a brigade, so signally distinguished 
himself. Two horses were shot under 
him and he himself was severely 



wounded, but was more than compen- 
sated by the victory achieved. Con- 
gress voted him a gold medal, and he 
was soon promoted to a major- general- 
ship. 

Fourth. The battle of Fort Brie, 
fought on the 15th of August, in which 
the British General Drummond was 
repulsed with great loss. 

Fifth. The battle of Plattsburg, 
which was fought on the nth of Sep- 
tember. This was a joint land anr^ 
naval action. General Macomb com- 
manded th-e United States land forces 
at this place ; General Prevost com- 
manded those of the British. The 
United States naval forces were com- 
manded by Commodore MacDonough ; 
the British fleet was commanded by 
Commodore Downie. The assault was 
commenced by Prevost with his lane 
forces. As Commodore Downie moved 
up to assist with his fleet, he was met 
and engaged by MacDonough with his 
small flotilla. 

Capture of the British Fleet. 

The chief interest of both armies was 
now diverted from the action on land 
to that on water, while the conflict be- 
tween the fleet and flotilla lasted. It 
continued for upwards of two hours, and 
was fierce as well as bloody. It ended 
in the surrender of the British fleet to 
Commodore MacDonough. Commodore 
Downie was killed in the fight, and 
when his flagship struck her colors, 
the results of the day were decided or 
land as well as on the water. Prevost 
immediately retreated. This victory 
ended all active operations in that quar- 
ter. 

Meantime, during the summer of 
1 8 14 a fleet of fifty or sixty vessels ar- 



36 



OUR SECOND WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 



rived in the Chesapeake bay under Ad- 
mirals Cockburn and Cochrane, bring- 
ing a large land force under General 
Ross. The design was the capture of 
the city of Washington. Ross landed 
five thousand men on the 19th of Au- 
gust, at the head of the Patuxent, and 
commenced his march overland. There 
were at the time no forces for defence 
near the capital. The raw militia were 
hastily collected and put under General 
Winder, who met the enemy at Bladens- 
burg. The President and cabinet left 
the city. Winder with his militia was 
barely able to retard the advance of 
Ross. He entered Washington the 24th 
of August, and burned most of the pub- 
lic buildings, including the President's 
house and the capitol. 

Repulse of the Enemy. 

The troops then returned to their 
shipping, and proceeded up the Chesa- 
peake. Landing at North Point, they 
advanced on Baltimore. This place was 
defended by General Striker, with a force 
consisting mostly of raw militia and 
volunteers. In an action which took 
place on the 12th of September, Ross 
was killed, and his forces retired. After 
an unsuccessful attack of the British 
fleit under Cockburn, upon Fort Mc- 
Henr}/, which commanded the entrance 
to the city, the whole aimy re-embarked 
and left the bay. 

During this bombardment of Fort Mc- 
Henry by Cockburn, which lasted anight 
and a whole day, Francis Scott Key, of 
Baltimore, then detained on board one 
of the British vessels, whither he had 
gone on some public mission, as he 
gazed most anxiously upon the flag of 
his country, still floating triumphantly 
on the ramparts in the midst of the 



heavy cannonading, composed his soul^ 
stirring song, the " Star Spangled Ban- 
ner." The reader will be interested in 
the accompanying fac-simile of the 
original song, one of the most famous 
ever composed, the popularity of which 
only increases with *he lapse of time. 

The New England States suffered 
much in the same way during the sum- 
mer. Stonington was bombarded, and 
attempts were made to land an invading 
force at several places, which were re- 
pulsed by the militia. 

Gains and Losses. 

The operations of the respective 
navies on the ocean during the year 
1 8 14 resulted about as they did in 18 13. 
The United States lost two war-ships 
and captured five of like character, be- 
sides many British merchantmen. 

Mr. Gerry, the Vice-President, died 
suddenly in Washington on the 23d of 
November of this year. John Gaillard, 
of South Carolina, succeeded him as 
President of the Senate pro te^npore. 

While these events were occurring on 
land and water, during the summer of 
1 8 14, the hostility in the New England 
States to the Federal administration bad 
ripened into a determination to take de- 
cisive steps for the maintenance of their 
own rights in their owts. way. A ma- 
jority of the people of these States were 
strongly opposed to the conquest of 
Canada. Massachusetts and Connecti- 
cut, throwing themselves upon their re- 
served rights under the Constitution, 
refused tc Allow their militia to be sent 
out of dieir States, in what they deemed 
a war of aggression against others, 
especially when they were needed for 
their own defence in repelling an inva- 
sion. 



OUR SECOND WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 37 



C^, /!a^^ ^yoT^^ ^tA^ y<s*^ ^^o^-u.fL 'tCc. ^xi^TS'^'^ <^^*^, 



FACSIMILE OF THE ORIGINAL COPY OF THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER 



38 



OUR SEcONij WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 



For this course they were very 
severely censured by most of their sister 
States, and the more so from the fact 
that the war had been entered upon for 
the joint maintenance of the rights of 
their seamen and commerce. Moreover, 
it was insisted upon by the friends of 
the administration, that the mode of 
warfare adopted was the surest for the 
attainment of the objects aimed at. But 
what increased the opposition of the 
New England States at this time was 
the refusal of the administration to pay 
the expenses of their militia, called out 
by the governors of their respective 
States for their own local defence. 

The Hartford Convention. 

This refusal was based upon the 
ground that these States had refused to 
send their militia out of their limits 
upon a Federal call. To this may be 
added the new scheme of the adminis- 
tration for forcing the militia of the 
respective States outside of their limits, 
not by a call on the governors of the 
States for them, but by a general act of 
Federal conscription, which was con- 
.^idered by many able statesmen and 
urists as clearly unconstitutional. 

It was in this condition of things that 
the Legislature of Massachusetts in- 
vited the neighboring States to meet in 
convention for mutual consultation. 
Accordingly, a convention of delegates 
from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New 
Hampshire, Vermont and Connecticut, 
met eX Hartford, in the latter State, on 
the i5J;h day of December, 1814. The 
deliberations of this famous body were 
held within closed doors. What the real 
ultimate designs of the leading members 
of it were, have never been fully dis- 
closed. Some mystery has ever hung 



over it. But the resolutions adopted by 
it, and the public address put forth by 
it at the time, very clearly indicate that 
the purpose was, either to effect a change 
of policy on the part of the Federal ad- 
ministration in the conduct of the war, 
or for these States, in the exercise of 
their sovereign rights, to provide for 
their own well-being, as they thought 
best, by withdrawing from the Union. 
The only positive results of the con- 
vention were, the appointment of a dep- 
utation of the body to wait upon the 
Federal authorities at Washington, co 
whom in person their views were to be 
presented, and the call of another con- 
vention, to which this deputation was 
to report, before any further decisive 
action should be taken. 

British Force Landed. 

In the meantime, it became know^ 
that a large British force — of at least 
twelve thousand men — had been landed 
at or near the mouth of the Mississippi 
river, under Sir Bdward Pakenham. 
The country everywhere was in the 
greatest alarm for the safety of New 
Orleans. The command of this depart- 
ment was now in charge of General 
Jackson, with such forces as he could 
collect, consisting mostly of volunteers 
and militia, amounting in all to not 
more than one half the numbers of the 
approaching foe. He went vigorously 
to work to repel this most formidable 
invasion. With such means of resist- 
ance as the genius of a "born general " 
only can improvise, he was soon in an 
attitude of defence. The result was the 
ever-memorable charge of the British, 
and their bloody repulse by Jackson, on 
the 8th of January, 18 15. 

This was the most brilliant victory 



40 



OUR SECOND WAR WITH GRKAT BRITAIN. 



achieved by the arms of the United 
States during the war. Two thousand 
British soldiers, led in a charge on 
Jackson's breastworks, were left dead 
or wounded upon the field. Pakenham 
himself was killed. Major-Generals 
Gibbs and Keane, the two officers next 
in command, were both wounded, the 
former mortally ; while Jackson's loss 
was only seven killed and six wounded. 

The War Ended. 

Upon the heels of the news of this 
splendid achievement, which electrified 
the country with joy, came the still 
more gratifying intelligence of a treaty 
of peace, which the commissioners had 
effected at Ghent on the 24th of Decem- 
ber, 1 8 14, fifteen days before this great 
battle was fought. All discontents 
ceased, and in the general joy at this 
close of the bloody scenes of two years 
and over, it seemed to be entirely for- 
gotten or overlooked that not one word 
was said in the treaty about the right of 
search or impressment by Great Britain, 
which was the main point in issue at 
the commencement of the war. 

The treaty of peace with England 
was promptly ratified, and all necessary 
steps for a disbandment of the army 
were immediately taken by Congress. 
But further work was in store for the 
navy. The Dey of Algiers — in viola- 
tion of the treaty of 1795 — had recently 
been committing outrages upon Amer- 
ican commerce within his waters. 

Another war against him was soon 
^afterwards declared. The gallant De- 
catur was sent with a fleet to the Medi- 
terranean for the chastisement of this 
piratical power. He in a short time 
captured two Algerine ships and brought 
the Dey to terms. A treaty of peace 



was made on the 30th of June, by which 
the United States obtained, not only se- 
curity for the future, but indemnity for 
the past. 

William H. Crawford, on his return 
from Paris, where he had been resident 
United States Minister for some time, 
was appointed Secretary of War, ist of 
August, 181 5. 

The charter of the first bank of the 
United States having expired in 181 1, 
and an act for its renewal having failed 
to pass, several attempts afterwards were 
made to obtain a charter for a similar 
institution, which likewise failed. A 
bill for this purpose, which had passed 
both houses of Congress, was vetoed by 
Mr. Madison, in January, 1814. But 
on the loth of April, 1816, another bill, 
of like character, received his approval, 
by which a new bank of the United 
States was incorporated for twenty 
years, with a capital of thirty-five mil- 
lion dollars. 

Indiana in the Union. 

On the 19th day of April, 1816, an 
act was passed for the admission of 
Indiana into the Union as a State. 

During the fall of 18 16 another Pres- 
idential election took place. There was 
at this time considerable division among 
the Republicans as to who the succes- 
sor should be. Mr. Madison had posi- 
tively declined standing for re-election. 
The choice of candidates finall}^ made 
by the Democratic members of Congress 
in caucus was : Mr. Monroe for Presi- 
dent; and Governor Daniel D. Tomp- 
kins, of New York, for Vice President. 
The Federal party, still so-called, nomi- 
nated Rufus King of New York, for 
President ; and John Eager Howard, 
of Maryland, for Vice-President. 



OUR SECOND WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 



41 



The result of the vote of the Elec- 
toral Colleges was 183 for Mr. Monroe, 
and 34 for Mr. King ; 183 for Governor 
Tompkins, and 22 for Mr. Howard. 
The vote by States between the Demo- 
cratic and Federal tickets at this elec 
tion stood : 16 for the Democratic and 
three for the Federal. The sixteen 
States that voted for Mr. Monroe and 
Mr. Tompkins were : New Hamp- 
shire, Rhode Island, Vermont, New 
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Mary- 
land, Virginia, North Carolina, South 
Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky, Tennes- 
see, Ohio, Louisiana, and Indiana. 
The three that voted for Mr. King 
were : Massachusetts, Connecticut and 
Delaware. 

After the 4th of March, 18 17, Mr. 
Madison retired from office, leaving the 
country at peace with the world, and 
rapidly recovering from the injurious 
effects of the late war. He returned to 
his home at Montpelier, Virginia, where 
he enjoyed the society of his friends 
and the general esteem of his country- 
men. 

The most distinguishing feature of 
his administration was the war with 



Great Britain. Whatever may be 
thought of the wisdom or policy of that 
war, or of its general conduct, the re- 
sult unquestionably added greatly to 
the public character of the United 
States m the estimation of foreign 
powers. The price at which this had 
been purchased was, in round numbers, 
about one hundred million dollars in 
public expenditures, and the loss of 
about thirty thousand men, including 
those who fell in battle as well as those 
who died of disease contracted in the 
service. 

Of the amount of private or individ- 
ual losses no approximate estimate can 
be made ; and though in the treaty of 
peace nothing was said about the main 
cause for which the war was prosecuted, 
yet Great Britain afterwards refrained 
from giving any offence in the practical 
assertion of her theoretic right of search 
and impressment. Whether the same 
ends could have been attained by any 
other course which would not have 
involved a like sacrifice of treasure and 
blood,* is a problem that can never be 
satisfactorily solved by human specu- 
lation. 



lA the Uni 

J'^i\^ durin< 



CHAPTER III. 

Origin and Growth of the Mormons. 



the important events in 
United States occurring 
ig the century must be 
mentioned the rise and 
growth of the new and strange sect 
known as the Mormons, or the Church 
of Jesus Christ of L^atter-Day Saints. It 
was founded by Joseph Smith, at Man- 
chester, New York, in 1830, and after 
many vicissitudes finally settled in Salt 
I^ake City in Utah. Smith, was born 
Dvicember 23rd, 1805, at Sharon, Wind- 
sor County, Vermont, from which place 
ten years later his parents, a poor, ignor- 
ant, thriftless and not too honest couple, 
removed to New York, where they set- 
tled on a small farm near Palmyra, 
Wayne County (then Ontario). 

Four years later, in 1809, they re- 
moved to Manchester, some six miles 
distant, and it was at the latter place 
when fifteen years old that Smith Jaegan 
to have his alleged visions, in one of 
which on the night of 21st of Septem- 
ber, 1823, the angel Moroni appeared 
to him three times and told him that 
the Bible of the Western Continent, the 
supplement to the New Testament, was 
buried in a certain spot near Man- 
chester. Thither, four years later and 
after due disciplinary probation, Smith 
went and had delivered into his charge 
by an angel of the lyord a stone box, in 
which was a volume six inches thick, 
made of thin gold plates eight inches 
by seven, and fastened together by three 
gold rings. 

The plates were covered with small 
writing in the "Reformed Egyptian" 
tongue, and were accompanied by a 
42 



pair of supernatural spectacles, consist- 
ing of two crystals set in a silver bow, 
and called " Urim and Thummim ; " 
by aid of these the mystic characters 
could be read. 

Being himself unable to read or write 
fluently, Smith employed as amanuensis, 
one Oliver Cowdery, to whom, from 
behind a curtain, he dictated a transla- 
tion, which, with the aid of a farmer, 
Martin Harris, who had more money 
than wit, was printed and published in 
1830 under the title of Tke Book of 
Mormon^ and accompanied by the sworn 
statement of Oliver Cowdery, David 
Whitmer, and Martin Harris that an 
angel of God had shown them the plates 
of which the book was a translation. 

They Swore Falsely. 

This testimony all three, on renounc- 
ing Mormonism some years later, de- 
nounced as false ; but meanwhile it 
helped Smith to impose on the credu- 
lous, particularly in the absence of the 
gold plates themselves, which suddenly 
and mysteriously disappeared. 

The Book oj Mormon^ in which Jos- 
eph Smith was declared to be God's 
"prophet," with all power and entitled 
to all obedience, professes to give the 
history of America from its first settle- 
ment by a colony of refugees from 
among the crowd dispersed by the con- 
fusion of tongues at the Tower of Babel 
down to the year 5 a. d. These settlers 
having in course of time destroyed <^ne 
another, nothing of importance occurred 
until 600 B. c, when Lehi, his wife and 
four sons, with ten friends, all frota 



ORIGIN AND GROWTH uF THE MORMONS. 



Jerusalem, landed on the coast 
Chili, and effected a settlement. 



All went well until the death ot 
lyehi, when the divine appointment to 



43 

the leadership of Nephi, the youngest 
son, roused the resentment of his elder 
brothers, who were in consequence con- 
demned to have dark skins and to be an 
idle mischievous race— hence the North 
American Indians. Between the Nc- 
phites and the bad Hebrews a fiercq 
war was maintained for centuries, until 
finally, in spite of divine intervention 
in the person of the crucified Christ, 
the Nephites fell away from the true 
faith, and in 384 a. d. were nearly 
annihilated by their dark-skinned foes 
in a battle at the hill of Cumorah in 
Ontario county, New York. 

Among the handful that escaped were 
Mormon and his son Moroni, the for- 
mer of whom collected the sixteen 
books of records, kept by successive 
kings and priests, into one volume, 
which on his death was supplemented 
by his son with some personal remi- 
niscences and by him buried in the hill 
of Cumorah— he being divinely assured 
that the book would one day be discov- 
ered by God's chosen prophet. 

A Historical Romance. 

This is Smith's account of the book, 
but in reality it was written in 18 12 as 
an historical romance by one Solomon 
Spalding, a crack-brained preacher; 
and the MS. falling into the hands of an 
unscrupulous compositor, Sidney Rig- 
don, was copied by him, and subse- 
quently given to Joseph Smith. Armed 
with this book and with self-assumed 
divine authority, the latter soon began » 
to attract followers. 

On 6th of April, 1830, the first con- 
ference of the new sect, called by their 
neighbors Mormons, but by themselves 
subsequently Latter-Day Saints of Jesus 
Christ, was held at Fayette, Seneca 



44 



ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THE MORMONS. 



county, New York, and in the same 
year another revelation was received by 
Smith, proclaiming him "seer, trans- 
lator, prophet apostle of Jesus Christ, 
and elder of tne church." Smith now 
began to baptize ; but, his character, 
which was none of the best, being too 
well known in Fayette, he found it 
convenient to remove with his follow- 
ers, now thirty in number, to Kirtland, 
Ohio, which was to be the seat c ^ the 
New Jerusalem. 

Tarred and Feathered 

Here he had another revelation, di- 
recting the saints to consecrate all their 
property to God and to start a bank. 
This being done, and Smith appointed 
president of the bank, the country was 
soon flooded with worthless notes, which 
fact, added to other grievances, so en- 
raged the neighboring Christian settlers, 
that on the night of 22nd of May, 1832, 
a number of them dragged Smith and 
Rigdon from their beds and tarred and 
feathered them. One year later, the 
church was fairly organized, with three 
presidents, Smith, Rigdon, and Freder- 
ick G. Williams, who were styled the 
first presidency, and entrusted with the 
keys of the last kingdom. 

About this time the licentiousness of 
Smith might have led to the dissolution 
of the church but for the accession of 
Brigham Young, a Vermont painter and 
glazier, thirty years old, who turned up 
in Kirtland in 1832, and was immedi- 
ately ordained elder. Young's indomi- 
table will, persuasive eloquence, execu- 
tive ability, shrewdness, and zeal, soon 
made their influence felt, and, when a 
further step was taken in 1835 towards 
the organization of a hierarchy by the 
institution of the quorum of the "twelve 



apostles," who were sent out as prosely- 
tizing missionaries among the " gen- 
tiles," Young was ordained one of the 
"twelve," and despatched to preach 
throughout the eastern States. 

In 1836 a large temple was consecra- 
ted in Kirtland, and in the following 
year Orson Hyde and Heber C. Kimball 
were sent off as missionaries to England, 
where, among the laboring masses in 
Manchester, lyiverpool, Birmingham, 
Leeds, Glasgow, and the mining dis- 
tricts of South Wales they achieved a 
remarkable success. Early in 1838 the 
Kirtland bank failed, and Smith and 
Rigdon fled to Caldwell county, Mis- 
souri, where a large body of the saints, 
after having been driven successively 
from Jackson and Clay counties, had 
taken refuge and flourished. 

A Profligate Impostor. 

Smith's troubles, however, continued 
to increase. His gross profligacy had re- 
pelled many of his leading supporters 
and bred internal dissensions, while from 
the outside the brethren were harassed 
and threatened by the steadily growing 
hostility of the native Missourians. To 
counteract the efforts of his enemies, a 
secret society was organized in Smith's 
favor in October, 1838, called the Dan- 
ites, with the avowed purpose of sup- 
porting Smith at all hazards, of up- 
holding the authority of his revelation 
and decrees as superior to the laws of 
the land, and of helping him to get 
possession, first of the State, then of the 
United States, and ultimately of the 
world. 

To such a height did the inner dis- 
sensions and the conflicts with the "gen- 
tiles" grow that they assumed the pro- 
portions of a civil war, and necessitated 



i 



ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THE MORMONS. 



45 



the calling out of the State militia. 
Defying the legal officers, Smith forti- 
fied the town and armed the saints, but 
finally had to succumb to superior num- 
bers. Smith and Rigdon were arrested 



shortly afterwards rejoined by Smith, 
who succeeded in escaping from prison, 
and, having obtained a charter, they 
founded the city of Nauvoo. 

Such were the powers granted them 




NEW MORMON TEMPLE IN SALT LAKE CITY. 



and imprisoned on a charge of treason, 
murder and felony, and their followers 
to the number of 15,000 crossed over 
into Illinois and settled near Commerce, 
Hancock county. Here they were 



by this charter as to render the city 
practically independent of the State 
Government, and to give Smith all but 
unlimited evil power. He organized a 
military body called the Nauvoo legion, 



46 



ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THK MORMONS. 



of which he constituted himself com- 
mander with the title of lieutenant-gen- 
eral, while he was also president of the 
church and mayor of the city, On April 
6th, 1 84 1, the foundations of the new 
temple were laid, and the city continued 
to grow rapidly in prosperity and size. 
But Smith's vices were beginning to 
bear fruit. Some years previously he 
had prevailed on several women to co- 
habit with him, and in order to pacify 
his lawful wife and silence the objec- 
tions of the saints he had a revelation on 
July 1 2th, 1843, expressly establishing 
and approving polygamy. The procla- 
mation of the new doctrine excited 
widespread indignation, which found 
special expression in the pages of the 
Expositoi^^ a newspaper published by an 
old friend of Smith, one Dr. Foster. 

Shot Dead by a Mob. 

Smith at once caused the Expositor 
printing-office to be razed and Foster 
expelled, on which the latter procured 
a warrant for the arrest of Smith, his 
brother Hyrum, and sixteen others. 
Smith resisted ; the militia was called 
out ; the Mormons armed themselves ; 
and a civil war seemed imminent, when 
the governor of the State persuaded 
Smith to surrender and stand his trial. 
Accordingly, on June 27, 1844, he and 
Hyrum were imprisoned in Carthage 
jail ; but that same night a mob broke 
into the prison, dragged out Smith and 
his brother and shot them dead. 

This shooting was the most fortunate 
thing that had ever happened to the 
Mormon cause, investing the murdered 
president with the halo of martyrdom, 
and effacing public recollection of his 
vices in the lustre of a glorious death. 
Of the confusion that followed Smith's 



" taking off," Brigham Young profited 
by procuring his own election to the 
presidency by the council of the "twelve 
apostles," — a position for which Ms 
splendid executive abilities well fitted 
him, as subsequent events abundantly 
proved. 

The following year witnessed what 
appeared to be the culmination of their 
misfortunes. The legislature of Illinois 
repealed the charter of Nauvoo, and so 
critical did the situation become that 
the leaders resolved to emigrate imme- 
diately, and preparations were begun 
for a general exodus westward. Early in 
1846 a large number of the body met at 
Council Bluffs, Iowa, and those who had 
stayed behind soon found cause to re- 
gret that they too had not left Nauvoo, 
as in the September of the same year 
that city was cannonaded, and the Mor- 
mons were driven out. 

Shrewd Speculation. 

The subsequent history of Nauvoo rs 
interesting. The new citizens sent 
abroad highly colored circulars about 
the great water-power and natural site, 
and a great speculation followed, which 
ended in a collapse, and the city shrank 
to a little hamlet of perhaps 700 people. 
Then came the Icarians, French Com- 
munists, under the lead of M. Cabet. 
These proposed to fit up the temple for 
a social hall and school-room. 

But at 2 A. M. of November 10, 1848, 
it was found to be on fire, and before 
daylight every particle of woodwork 
was destroyed. It was set on fire in the 
third story of the steeple, one hundred 
and forty feet from the ground. The 
dry pine burned like tinder. There was 
no mode of reaching the fire, and in 
twenty minutes the whole wooden in- 



ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THE MORMONS. 



47 



terior was a mass of flames. In two 
hours nothing remained but hot walls 
enclosing a bed of embers. Afterwards 
a man residing fourteen miles distant 
confessed that he 
set it on fire. He 
had suffered at the 
hands of the Mor- 
mons and swore no 
trace of them should 
cumber the soil of 
Illinois. 

Meanwhile pio- 
neers had been de- 
spatched to the 
Great Salt Lake 
valley, Utah, and, 
their report prov- 
ing favorable, a 
large body of emi- 
grants was marched 
with military disci- 
pline across the wil- 
derness to the val- 
ley, where they im- 
mediately proceed- 
ed to found Salt 
Lake City, and 
where on July 24, 
1 847, they were 
joined by their 
chief, Brigham 
Young. In the 
May following the 
main body of the 
saints set out to 
rejoin their breth- 
ren, and in the au- 
tumn of that year 

reached Salt Lake City. Large tracts 
of land were at once put under cultiva- 
tion, a great ciLy sprang up as by 
magic, and the untiring industry, en- 
ers:^^ and zeal of the emigrants turned 



a barren wilderness into a fertile and 
blooming garden. 

An emigration fund was organize^, 
missionaries were sent out, and ^oon 




JOE SMITH KIEjC^ED By A MOB OF INDIGNANT CITIZENS. 

settlers began to pour in from all quar- 
ters of the globe, particularly from 
Great Britain, Sweden and Norway, and 
in less numbers from Germany, Swit- 
zerl^nrl and France. Strauia-elv enough, 



48 



ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THE MORMONS. 



and the fact deserves emphasis, Ireland 
has furnished few if any recruits to the 
cause of Mormonism. In March, 1849, 
a convention was held at Salt Ivake 
City, and a State was organized under 
the name of Deseret, meaning "the 
land of the honey-bee." 

A legislature was also elected, and a 
constitution framed, which was sent on 
to Washington. This Congress refused 
to recognize, and by way of compromise 
. for declining to admit the proposed new 
State into the Union, President Fill- 
more in 1850 organized the country oc- 
cupied by the Mormons into the Terri- 
tory of Utah, with Brigham Young as 
governor. District judges were also ap- 
pointed by the Federal Government; 
but in 185 1, a few months after their 
appointment, they were ibrced to leave 
by the aggressive tactics of Young. 
Such bold defiance of the Federal Gov- 
ernment could not be ignored; Brigham 
was suspended from the governorship, 
and Colonel Steptoe of the United States 
army appointed in his stead. 

Daring Outrages. 

The new governor, backed by a bat- 
talion of soldiers, arrived in Utah in 
August, 1854; but so strong was the op- 
position which he met with that he 
dared not assume office, and was forced 
to content himself with- merely winter- 
ing in^ Salt Ivake City, after which he 
withdrew his troops to California. Nor 
did the other civil officers appointed by 
the United States Government at the 
same time show any bolder front. In 
February, 1856, a band of armed Mor- 
mons broke into the court-room of the 
United States district judge, and forced 
Judge Drnmniond to adjourn his court 
sine die. His surrender precipitated the 



flight of the other civil officers, and with 
the sole exception of the United States 
Indian agent they withdrew from Salt 
Lake City. 

These facts led President Buchanan 
to appoint a new governor in the person 
of Alfred Cumming, the superintendent 
of Indian affairs on the upper Missouri, 
who, in 1857, went to Utah, accom- 
panied by Judge Eckels of Indiana as 
chief justice, and by a force of 2500 
soldiers. Enraged by the aggressive ac- 
tion, Brigham Young boldly called the 
saints to arms. In September the Uni- 
ted States army reached Utah, but on 
the 5th and 6th of October, a band of 
mounted Mormons destroyed a number 
of its supply trains, and a few days later 
cut off" 800 oxen from its rear and drove 
them into Salt Lake City. 

Mountain Meadows Massacre. 

The result was that the United States 
army, now commanded by Colonel A. 
S. Johnson, was compelled — it being 
now mid-November — to go into winter 
quarters at Black's Forks, near Fort 
Bridger. In the same year a party of 
Mormons and Indians, instigated and 
led by a Mormon bishop named John D. 
Lee, attacked a train of 150 non-Mor- 
mon emigrants at Mountain Meadows, 
near Utah, and massacred every soul. 
Governor Cumming at once declared 
the Territory in a state of rebellion ; 
but in th^ spring of 1858, through the 
intervention of Thomas L. Kane, of 
Pennsylvania, armed with letters of an 
thority from President Buchanan, the 
Mormons were induced to submit to the 
Federal authority, and accepted a free 
offer of pardon made to them by the 
United States Government as the con- 
dition of their submission. 



ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THE MORMONS. 



49 



Matters being thus settled, the Federal 
troops encamped on the western shore 
of I^ake Utah, some forty miles from 
Salt Lake City, where they remained 
until withdrawn from the Territory in 
i860. On the close of our Civil War a 
Federal Governor was again appointed, 
and, in 1871, polygamy was declared to 
be a criminal offence, and Brigham 
Young was arrested. 

This action, however, on the part of 



The year 1877 was otherwise signal- 
ized in Mormon history by the trial, 
conviction, and execution of John D. 
Lee, for the Mountain Valley massacre 
of 1857. Of late years the question of 
Mormonism has occupied public atten- 
tion. In 1873 Mr. Frelinghuysen intro- 
duced a bill severely censuring polyg- 
amy, and declaring that the wives of 
polygamists could claim relief by action 
for divorce. In 1874 the committee of 




MASSACRE OF THE MORRISITES. 



the United States Government was 
merely spasmodic, and the Mormons 
continued to practice polygamy, and to 
increase in wealth and numbers until 
August 29, 1877, when Brigham Young 
died, leaving a fortune of $2,000,000 to 
seventeen wives and fifty-six childrun. 
He was succeeded in office by John 
Taylor, an Englishman, although the 
actual leadership fell to George Q. Can- 
non, "first counsellor" to the president, 
and one of the ablest men in the sect. 



the House of Representatives reported 
a bill which reduced Utah to the posi- 
tion of a province, placing the control 
of affairs in the hands of Federal officials, 
and practically abolishing polygamy. 

In the same year George Q. Cannon 
was elected a delegate from Utah, and 
though his election was contested it was 
confirmed by the House of Representa- 
tives. This decision, however, was ac- 
companied by the passing of a resolu- 
tion by a vote of 127 to 51, appointing 



60 



ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THE MORMONS. 



a committee of investigation into Dele- 
gate Cannon's alleged polygamy — he 
having, it was asserted, four wives. 
Later in the same year the Utah Judici- 
ary Bill, attacking the very foundation 
of Mormonism, passed the House in 
spite of the opposition of Cannon. 

Other steps in the same direction 
have since been taken, and bills passed, 
having for their object the extirpation 
of polygamy. The secession, chiefly 
because of his opposition to the prac- 
tice, of Brigham Young's son, a Chris- 
tian preacher, and of a large body of 
other anti-po\ygami6ts who claim to be 
the true Latter- Day Saints, represents 
not an individual opinion, but the 
deep-rooted conviction of a great party. 
Already there are not wanting signs of 
approaching dissolution, of which per- 
haps the most significant is the confer- 
ence of the "Re-organized Church of 
Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints," held 
on April 6, 1883, at Kirtland, Lake 
County, Ohio. 

Origin of the New Sect. 

This sect originated in 185 1, seven 
years after the death of Joseph Smith, 
when several officers of the church met 
and claimed to have received a revela- 
tion from God, directing them to repu- 
diate Brigham Young, as not being the 
divinely-appointed and legitimate suc- 
cessor of Joseph Smith, and as being 
the promulgator of such false doctrines 
as polygamy, Adam-God worship, and 
the right to shed the blood of apostates. 

Nothing of special importance oc- 
curred, however, till i860, when Joseph 
Smith, Jr., the eldest son of the founder 
of the faith, became identified with the 
Re-organized Church as its president. 
Since then the seceders have prosecuted 



missionary work throughout the United 
States, Great Britain, Canada, Scandi- 
navia, Switzerland, Australia, and the 
Society Islands, until their communi- 
cants are said to number over 27,000. 

Bill to Suppress Polygamy. 

On January 12, 1887, the House of 
Representatives passed without division 
a bill for the suppression of polygamy 
in the territory of Utah. Its chief pro- 
visions are: (i) Polygamy is declared 
to be a felony ; (2) the chief financial 
corporations of the Mormons are dis- 
solved, and the attorney-general is di- 
rected to wind them up by process of 
the courts ; (3) polygamists are made 
ineligible to vote; (4) all voters in Utah 
are to b? required to take an oath to 
obey the laws of the United States, and 
especially the laws against polygamy ; 
(5) woman suffrage in Utah is abolished, 
and (6) lawful wives and husbands are 
made competent witnesses against per- 
sons accused of polygamy. 

It was reported in September, iCxD, 
that polygamy had been declared to be 
no longer a feature of Mormon teach- 
ing, and that it was the intention of the 
sect to submit to the ordinary laws 
binding on Americans. 

In the first part of April, 1893, oc- 
curred the dedication of the great tem- 
ple at Salt Lake City, built in forty 
years, at a cost stated to be ^5,000,000 
In September, 1894, our government 
by proclamation granted pardon to 
polygamists, and it was reported that 
among the Mormons there was a gen- 
eral disposition to observe the laws of 
the United States enacted against their 
favorite institution. In January, 1897, 
ten colonies in New Mexico were re- 
ported to be prosperous. 



CHAPTER IV. 

War Between the United States and Mexico. 



ARIv'V in the century, pioneers 
from the United States began to 
find their wa}^ to Texas, which 
was then a wild country, inhabited only 
by roving Indians and the garrisons of 
the few Spanish forts within its limits. 
One of these emigrants, Moses Austin, 
of Durham, Connecticut, conceived the 
plan of colonizing settlers from the 
United States. 

For this purpose he obtained from the 
Spanish Government, in 1820, the grant 
of an extensive tract of land; but before 
he could put his plans in execution he 
died. His son, Stephen F. Austin, in- 
herited the rights of his father under 
this grant, and went to Texas with a 
number of emigrants from this country, 
and explored that region for the pur- 
pose of locating his grant. 

He selected as the most desirable site 
for his colony the country between the 
Brazos and Colorado rivers, and founded 
a city, which he named Austin, in honor 
of the originator of the colony, to whom 
Texas owes its existence as an Ameri- 
can commonwealth. Having seen the 
settlers established in their new homes, 
Mr. Austin returned to the United 
States to collect other emigrants for his 
colony. 

During his absence Mexico and the 
orner Spanish provinces rose in revolt 
against Spain, and succeeded in estab- 
lishing their independence. Texas, 
being regarded as a part of the Mexican 
territory, shared the fortunes of that 
country. Upon his return to Texas, 
Austin, in consideration of the altered 
state of affairs, went to the city of Mex- 



ico, and obtained from the Mexican 
government a confirmation of the grant 
made to his father. Such a confirma- 
tion was necessary in order to enable 
him to give the settlers valid titles to 
the lands of his colony. 

Mexico at first exercised but a nomi- 
nal authority over the new settlements, 
and the colonists were allowed to live 
under their own laws, subject to the 
rules drawn up by Austin. In order to 
encourage settlementa in Texas, the 
Mexican Congress, on the second of 
May, 1824, enacted the following law, 
declaring, "That Texas is to be an- 
nexed to the Mexican province of Coha- 
huila, until it is of sufficient importance 
to form a separate State, when it is to 
become an independent State of the 
Mexican republic, equal to the other 
States of which the same is composed, 
free, sovereign, and independent in 
whatever exclusively relates to its 
internal government and administra- 
tion." 

Flood of Immigration. 

Encouraged by this decree, large 
numbers of Americans emigrated to 
Texas, and to these were added emi- 
grants from all the countries of Europe. 
The population grew rapidly, new 
towns sprang up, and Austin's colony 
prospered in a marked degree, until 
1830, when Bustamente having made 
himself, by violence and intrigue, pres- 
ident of the so-called Mexican republic, 
prohibited the emigration of foreigners 
to the Mexican territory,, and issued a 
number of decrees very oppressive to 

61 



52 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



the people, and in violation of the con- 
stitution of 1824. 

In order to enforce these measures in 
Texas, he occupied that province with 
his troops, and placed Texas under mil- 
itary rule. The Texans resented this 
interference with their rights, and finally 
compelled the Mexican troops to with- 
draw from the province. In 1832, an- 
other revolution in Mexico drove Bus- 
tamente from power, and placed Santa 
Anna at the head of affairs as presi- 
dent or dictator 

Arrested and Imprisoned. 

Texas took no part in the disturb- 
ances of Mexico, but after the accession 
of Santa Anna to power, formed a con- 
stitution, and applied for admission into 
the Mexican republic as a State, in ac- 
cordance with the constitution of 1824, 
and the act of the Mexican Congress 
which we have quoted. Stephen F. 
Austin was sent to the city of Mexico 
to present the petition of Texas for this 
purpose. He was refused an answer to 
this petition for over a year, and at last 
wrote to the authorities of Texas, advis- 
ing them to organize a State govern- 
ment without waiting for the action of 
the M'^xican Congress. 

For this recommendation, which the 
Mexican government regarded as trea- 
sonable, Santa Anna caused the arrest 
of Austin, and kept him in prison 
for over a year. Texas now began 
to manifest the most determined opposi- 
tion to the usurpation of Santa Anna, 
and measures were taken to maintain 
the rights of the province under the con- 
stitution of 1824. Troops were organ- 
ized, and preparations made to resist the 
force which it was certain Mexico would 
send against them. 



Santa Anna did not allow them to re- 
main long in suspense, but at once dis- 
patched a force under General Cos, to 
disarm the Texans. On the second o 
October, 1 83 5, Cos attacked the town of 
Gonzalez, which was held by a Texan 
force, but was repulsed with heavy loss. 
A week later, on the ninth of October, 
the Texans captured the town of Goliad, 
and a little later gained possession of 
the mission house of the Alamo. Both 
places were garrisoned, and the Texan 
army, which Vv?^as under the command 
of Austin, in the course of a few 
months succeeded in driving the Mexi- 
cans out of Texas. 

State Government. 

On the twelfth of November, 1835, a 
convention of the people of Texas met 
at the city of Austin, and organized a 
regular State government. Prominent 
among the members was General Sam 
Houston, a settler from the United 
States. Soon after the meeting of the 
convention General Austin resigned the 
command of the army, and was sent to 
the United States as the commissioner 
of that State to this government, and 
was succeeded as commander-in chief 
by General Sam Houston. Henry Smith 
was elected governor of Texas by the 
people. 

As soon as Santa Anna learned that 
his troops had been driven out of Texas, 
and that the Texans had set up a State 
government, he set out for that country 
with an army of seventy-five hundred 
men. He issued orders to his troops to 
shoot every prisoner taken, and intended 
to make the struggle a war of extermina- 
tion. He arrived before the Alamo late 
in February, 1836. This fort was very 
strong, and was held by a force of one 




e:zcuc'^ 



SCENES IN MEXICO. 



53 



54 



WAK. BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



hundred and forty Texans under Colonel 
Travis, It was besieged by the whole 
Mexican army, and was subjected to a 
bombardment of eleven days. 

Davy Crockett. 

At last, on the sixth of March, the 
garrison being worn out with fatigue, 
the fort was carried by assault, and the 
whole garrison was put to the sword. 
Among the heroes who fell at the Texan 
Thermopylae was the eccentric but chiv- 
alrous Colonel Davy Crockett, of Ten- 
nessee, who had generously come to aid 
the Texans in their struggle for liberty. 
The capture of the Alamo cost the Mexi- 
cans a loss of sixteen hundred men, or 
over eleven men for every one of its 
defenders. 

On the 17th of March, 1836, the con- 
vention adopted a constitution for an 
independent republic, and formally pro- 
claimed the independence of Texas. 
David G. Burnett was elected president 
of the republic. 

The fort at Goliad was held by a force 
of three hundred and thirty Texans, 
under Colonel Fanning, a native of 
Georgia. On the twenty-seventh of 
March it was attacked by the Mexican 
army. The garrison maintained a gal- 
lant defence, but their resources being 
exhausted, and the Mexicans being re- 
inforced during the night, Fanning de- 
cided to surrender his force, if he could 
obtain honorable terms. He proposed 
:o Santa Anna to lay down his arms and 
surrender the post on condition that he 
and his men should be allowed and as- 
sisted to return to the United States. 
The proposition was accepted by Santa 
Anna, and the terms of the surrender 
were formally drawn up and were signed 
by each commauder. As soon as the 



surrender was made, however, and the 
arms of the Texans were delivered, 
Santa Anna, in base violation of his 
pledge, caused Fanning and the survi- 
vors of the garrison, to the number of 
three hundred men, to be put to death- 
The massacres of the Alamo and Go- 
liad, and the steady advance of the Mex- 
ican army under Santa Anna caused a 
feeling of profound alarm throughout 
the new republic. The government 
was removed temporarily to Galveston, 
and General Houston retreated behind 
the San Jacinto. Santa Anna pursued 
the Texan forces, and at length came up 
with them on the banks of that stream. 
Houston had but seven hundred and 
fifty men with him, and these were im- 
perfectly armed and without discipline. 

Mexican Army Routed. 

With this force he surprised the Mexi- 
can camp, on the 21st of April, and 
routed the Mexican army, inflicting upon 
it a loss of over six hundred killed, and 
taking more than eight hundred priso- 
ners. Santa Anna himself was among 
the prisoners. Houston at once entered 
into negotiations with him for the with- 
drawal of the Mexican forces from 
Texas. This was done at once, and the 
independence of Texas was achieved. 
Santa Anna also recognized the inde- 
pendence of the new republic, but the 
Mexican Congress refused to confirui 
this act. 

Houston was now the idol of the 
Texan people as the deliverer of their 
country from the hated Mexicans. At 
the next general election he was chosen 
President as the republic, and was inau- 
gurated on the twenty-second of Octo- 
ber, 1836. General Mirabeau B. Lamar 
was the third President of the ii 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



53 



of Texas, and entered upon his office in 
1838, He was succeeded in 1844 by 
Anson Jones, the fourth President. 

The territory of the republic was suffi- 
ciently large to make five States the size 
of New York, and its climate and soil 
were among the most delightful and 
fertile in the world. It contained a popu- 
lation of about two hundred thousand, 
and was increasing rapidly in inhabi- 
tants and in prosperity. 

Texas a Republic. 

On the third of March, 1837, the in- 
dependence of the republic of Texas 
was acknowledged by the United States, 
and in 1839 by France and England. 
Being young and feeble, and being set- 
tled almost entirely by Americans, the 
people of Texas at an early day came to 
the conclusion that their besfinterests 
required them to seek a union with the 
United States, and as early as August, 
1837, 2. proposition was submitted to 
Mr. Van Buren looking to such a union. 
It was declined by him, but the question 
was takerx up by the press and people 
of the Union, and was discussed with 
the greatest interest and activity. 

The South was unanimously in favor 
of the annexation of Texas, as it was a 
region in which slave labor would be 
particularly profitable ; and a strong 
party in the North opposed the annexa- 
tion for the reason that it would inevi- 
tably extend the area of slavery. An 
additional argument against annexation 
was that it would involve a war with 
Mexico, which had never acknowledged 
the independence of Texas. 

In April, 1844, Texas formally ap- 
plied for admission into the United 
States, and a treaty for that purpose was 
negotiated with her by the government 



of this country. It was rejected by the 
Senate. 

In the fall of 1 844 the Presidential 
election took place. The leading po- 
litical question of the day was the an- 
nexation of Texas. It was advocated 
by the administration of President Tyler 
and by the Democratic party. This 
party also made the claim of the United 
States to Oregon one of the leading 
issues of the campaign. Its candidates 
were James K. Polk, of Tennessee, and 
George M. Dallas, of Pennsylvania. 
The Whig party supported Henry Clay, 
of Kentucky, and Theodore Freling- 
huysen, of New Jersey, and opposed the 
annexation of Texas. 

During this campaign, which was one 
of unusual excitement, the Anti-slaveiy 
party made its appearance for the first 
time as a distinct political organization, 
and nominated James G. .Birney as its 
candidate for the Presidency, 

Democrats in Power. 

The result of the campaign was a de- 
cisive victory for the Democrats. This 
success was generally regarded as an em- 
phatic expression of the popular will 
representing the Texas and Oregon 
questions. Mr. Birney did not receive 
a single electoral vote, and of the popu- 
lar vote only sixty-four thousand six 
hundred and fifty-three ballots were 
cast for him. 

When Congress met in December, 
1844, the efforts for the annexation of 
Texas were renewed. A proposition 
was made to receive Texas into the 
Union by a joint resolution of Congress. 
A bill for this purpose passed the House 
of Representatives, but the Senate ad- 
ded an amendment appointing commis- 
sioners to negotiate with Mexico for 



56 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



the annexation of Texas, which she 
still claimed as a part of her territory. 
The President was authorized by a 
clause in these resolutions to adopt either 
the House or the Senate plan of annexa- 
tion, and on the second of March, 1845, 
the resolutions were adopted. 

Senator Benton, of Missouri, the au- 
thor of the Senate plan, was of the opin- 
ion that the matter would be left to 
Mr. Polk, the President-elect, to be con- 
ducted by him; and that gentleman had 
expressed his intention to carry out the 
Senate plan, as he hoped an amicable 
arrangement could be made with Mex- 
ico. Mr. Tyler, however, determined 
not to leave the annexation of Texas to 
his successor, and at once adopted the 
plan proposed in the House resolutions, 
and on the night of Sunday, March 3d, 
a messenger was despatched with all 
speed to Texas to lay the proposition 
before the authorities of that State. It 
was accepted by them, and on the fourth 
of July, 1845, Texas became one of the 
United States. 

Large Territory Added. 

The area thus added to the territory of 
the Union comprised two hundred and 
thirty-seven thousand five hundred and 
four square miles. It was provided by 
the act of admission that four additional 
States might be formed out of the terri- 
tory of Texas, when the population 
should increase to an extent which 
should make such a step desirable. 
,Those States lying north of the Mis- 
souri Compromise line — 36° 30' north 
latitude — were to be free States, those 
south of that line were to be free or 
slave-holding ' ' as the people of each 
State asking admission may desire." 
To Texas was reserved the right to re- 



fuse to allow the division of her terri- 
tory. 

Mexico had never acknowledged the 
independence of Texas, and since the 
defeat at San Jacinto had repeatedly 
threatened to restore her authority over 
the Texans by force of arms. She 
warmly resented the annexation of 
Texas by the United States, and a few 
days after that event was completed. 
General Almonte, the Mexican minis- 
ter at Washington, entered a formal 
protest against the course of the United 
States, demanded his passports, and left 
the country. 

Redress for Outrages. 

Some years before this, a number of 
American ships trading with Mexican 
ports had been seized and plundered by 
the Mexican authorities, who also con- 
fiscated the property of a number of 
American residents in that country. 
The sufferers by these outrages appealed 
for redress to the government of the 
United States, which had repeatedly 
tried to negotiate with Mexico for 
the collection of these claims, which 
amounted to six millions of dollars. 
Mexico made several promises of settle- 
ment, but failed to comply with them. 
In 1840, however, a new treaty was 
made between that country and the 
United States, and Mexico pledged her- 
self to pay the American claims in 
twenty annual instalments of three 
hundred thousand dollars each. Three 
of these instalments had been paid at 
the time of the annexation of Texas; 
but Mexico now refused to make any 
further payment. 

Mexico claimed that the limits of 
Texas properly ended at the Neuces 
river, while the Texans insisted that 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



57 



their boundary was the Rio Grande. 
Thus the region between these two 
rivers became a debatable land, claimed 
by both parties, and a source of great 
and immediate danger. It was evident 
that Mexico was about to occupy this 
region with her troops, and the legisla- 
ture of Texas, alarmed by the threaten- 
ing attitude of that country, called upon 
the United States governuient to pro- 
tect its territory. The President at 
once sent General Zachary Taylor with 
a force of fifteen hundred regular troops, 
called the "army of occupation," to 
"take position in the country between 
the Neuces and the Rio Grande, and 
to repel any inyasion of the Texan 
territory." 

In Battle Array. 

General Taylor accordingly took po- 
sicion at Corpus Christi, at the mouth 
of the Neuces, in September, 1845, and 
remained there until the spring of 1846. 
At the same time a squadon of war ves- 
sels under Commodore Connor was des- 
patclied to the Gulf to co operate with 
General Ta}-lor. Both of these officers 
"were ordered to commit no act of hos- 
tility against Mexico unless she declared 
war, or was herself the aggressor by 
striking the first blow." 

At the commencement of the dispute 
between the two countries, Herrera was 
President of Mexico. Although diplo- 
matic communications had ceased be- 
tween the United States and Mexico, 
he was anxious to settle the quarrel by 
negotiation, but at tlie Presidential elec- 
tion held about this time Herrera was 
defeated, and Paredes, who was bitterly 
hostile to the United States, was cho- 
sen President of the Mexican republic. 
Paredes openly avowed his determina- 



tion to drive the i^mericans beyond the 
Neuces. 

In February, 1846, General Taylor 
was ordered by President Polk to ad- 
vance from the Neuces to a point on the 
Rio Grande, opposite the Mexican town 
of Matamoras, and establish there a for- 
tified post, in order to check the Mexi- 
can forces which were assembling there 
in large numbers for the purpose of 
invading Taxas. Taylor at once set 
out, and leaving the greater part of his 
stores at Point Isabel, on the Gulf, ad- 
vanced to the Rio Grande, and built a 
fort and established a camp opposite 
and within cannon shot of Matamoras. 
General Ampudia, commanding the 
Mexican forces at Matamoras, imme- 
diately notified General Taylor that this 
was an act of war upon Mexican soil, 
and demanded that he should "break 
up his camp and retire beyond the 
Neuces" within twenty-four hours. 

i^lrst Blood Shed. 

Taylor replied that he was acting in 
accordance with the orders of his eov- 
ernment, which was alone responsible 
3r his conduct, and that he should 
maintain the position he had chosen. 
He pushed forward the work on his 
fortifications with energy, and kept a 
close watch upon the Mexicans. Neithet 
commander was willing to take the re- 
sponsibility of beginning the war, and 
Ampudia, notwithstanding his threat, 
remained inactive. His course did not 
satify his government, and he was re- 
moved and General Arista appointed in 
his place. Arista at once began hostili- 
ties by interposing detachments of his 
army between Taylor's force and his 
depot of supplies at Point Isabel. On 
the twenty-sixth of April Taylor sent 



58 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



a party of sixty dragoons under Captain 
Thornton to reconnoitre the Mexican 
lines. The dragoons were surprised 
with a loss of sixteen killed. The re- 
mainder were made prisoners, and 
Thornton alone escaped. This was the 
first blood shed in the war with Mexico, 
the beginning of the struggle. 

A day or two later, being informed 
by Captain Walker, who, with his Texan 
Rangers, was guarding the line of com- 
munication with Point Isabel, that the 
Mexicans were threatening the latter 
place in heavy force. General Taylor 
left Major Brown with three hundred 
men to hold the fort, and marched to 
Point Isabel to relieve that place. He 
agreed with Major Brown that if the 
fort should be attacked or hard pressed, 
the latter should notify him of his dan- 
ger by firing heaving signal guns at 
certain intervals. He reached Point 
Isabel, twenty miles distant, on the 
second of May without meeting any 
opposition on the march. 

Signal Guns Fired. 

General Arista, attributing Taylor's 
withdrawal to fear, determined to cap- 
ture the fortification on the opposite 
side of the river. On the third of May 
he opened fire upon it from a heavy 
battery at Matamoras, and sent a large 
force across the Rio Grande, which took 
position in the rear of the fort and in- 
trenched themselves there. In the face 
of this double attack the little garrions 
defended themselves bravely, but at 
length Major Brown fell mortally 
wounded. The command devolved 
upon Captain Hawkins, who now felt 
himself justified in warning Taylor of 
his danger, and began to fire the signal 
guns agreed upon. 



Taylor was joined at Point Isabel 
by a small detachment, and his force 
was increased to twenty-three hundred 
men. He listened anxiously for the 
booming of the signal guns from the 
fort on the Rio Grande, and at length 
they were heard. He knew that the 
need of assistance must be great, as the 
little band in the fort had held out so 
long without calling for help, and he 
at once set out to join them. He left 
Point Isabel on the seventh of May, tak- 
ing with him a heavy supply train. The 
steady firing of the signal guns from 
Fort Brown (for so the work was after- 
wards named in honor of its gallant 
commander) urged the army to its 
greatest exertions. 

Battle of Palo Alto. 

On the 8th of May the Mexican army, 
six thousand strong, was discovered 
holding a strong position in front of a 
chaparral, near the small stream called 
the Palo Alto, intending to dispute the 
advance of the Americans. Taylor 
promptly made his dispositions to attack 
them. His troops were ordered to drink 
from the little stream and to fill their 
canteens. The train was closed up, and 
the line was formed with Major Ring- 
gold's light battery on Ihe right, Dun- 
can's battery on the left, and a battery 
of eighteen-pounders in the center. 

The artillery was thrown well in 
front of the infantry, and the order was 
given to advance. The Mexicans at 
once opened fire with their batteries, 
but the distance was too great to ac- 
complish anything. The American bat- 
teries did not reply until they had gotten 
within easy range, when they opened a 
fire the accuracy and rapidity of which 
astonished the Mexicans. 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



59 



Their lines were broken and they fell 
back, and the Americans advanced 
steadily through the chaparral, which 
had been set on fire by the discharge of 
cannon, until a new position within 
close range was reached. Paying no 
attention to the Mexican artillery, the 
American guns directed their fire upon 
the enemy's infantry and cavalry, and 
broke them again and again. The battle 
lasted five hours and ceased at nightfall. 
It was fought entirely by the artillery 
of the two armies, and was won by the 
superior handling and precis'"'' i of the 
American guns. 

Flying Artillery. 

The loss of the Mexicans was four 
hundred killed and wounded ; that of 
the Americans nine killed and forty-four 
wounded. Early in the battle Major 
Ringgold was mortally wounded and 
died a little later. He was regarded as 
one of the most gifted officers of the 
army, and to him was chiefly due the 
precision and rapidity of movement ac- 
quired by the "flying artillery " of the 
American army, which were so success- 
fully tested during this war. 

The American army encamped on the 
battle-field, and the next morning. May 
9th, as the Mexicans had retreated, leav- 
iiig their dead unburied, resumed its 
advance. In the afternoon the Mexi- 
cans were discovered occupying a much 
stronger position than they had held at 
Palo Alto. Their line was formed be- 
hind a ravine, called Resaca de la Palma, 
or the Dry River of Palms. Their 
flanks were protected by the thick cha- 
parral, and their artillery was thrown 
forward beyond the ravine and protected 
by an intrenchment, and swept the road 
by which the Americans must advance. 



During the night fresh troops had 
joined the Mexican army, and had in- 
creased their force to seven thousand 
men. 

Taylor formed his line with the artil- 
lery in the center. The artillery was 
ordered to advance along the road com- 
manded by the Mexican battery, and 
the infantry were directed to move as 
rapidly as possible through the chapar- 
ral, and drive out the Mexican sharp- 
shooters. The infantry executed this 
order in handsome style, but the chapar- 
ral was so dense that each man was 
obliged to act for himself as he forced 
his way through it. The Mexican bat- 
tery was handled with great skill and 
coolness, and held the center in check 
until some time after the infantry had 
forced their way close to the edge of 
the ravine. 

Charge of the Gallant Ma><, 

At this juncture Captain May was 
ordered to charge the Mexican guns, 
and started down the road at a trot. As 
he reached the position of the American 
artillery, Ivieutenant Ridgely suggested 
that May should halt and allow him to 
draw the Mexican fire. Ridgely opened 
a rapid fire on the Mexican guns, which 
was answered immediately. At the same 
moment May dashed at the Mexican 
battery with his dragoons, and reached 
it before the cannoneers could reload 
their pieces. They were sabred at their 
guns, and the battery was carried. Cap- 
tain May himself made a prisoner of 
General I^aVega, as the latter was in 
the act of discharging one of the guns. 

Leaving the battery to the American 
infantry which now hurried forward to 
secure it, the dragoons charged the 
Mexican centre and broke it. The whole 



60 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



American Hue then advanced rapidly ; 
the Mexicans gave way, and were soon 
flying in utter confusion towards the 
Rio Grande, which they crossed in such 
haste that many of them were drowned 
in the attempt to reach the Mexican 
shore. 

General Arista, the Mexican com- 
mander, fled alone from the field, leav- 
ing all his private and official papers 
behind him. The Americans lost one 
hundred and twenty-two men killed and 
wounded; the Mexicans twelve hun- 
dred. All the Mexican artillery, two 
thousand stand of arms, and six hun- 
dred mules were captured by the Amer- 
icans. 

Americans Advance. 

General Taylor advanced from the 
battlefield to Fort Brown, the garrison 
of which had heard the distant roar of 
the battle, and had seen the flight of 
the Mexican across the Rio Grande. 

General Taylor was delayed at Mata- 
moras for three months by the weak- 
ness of his force ; but, as soon as rein- 
forcements reached him, he prepared to 
advance into the interior. His first 
movement was directed against the city 
of Monterey, the capital of the State of 
New Leon, where the Mexicans had 
collected an army. His army numbered 
about nine thousand men of all arms, and 
of these a little over twenty-three hun- 
dred men were detached for garrisons, 
leaving an active force of six thousand 
six hundred and seventy men. On the 
twentieth of August General Worth's 
division marched from Matamoras, and 
a fortnight later General Taylor set out 
from the Rio Grande with the main 
army. On the ninth of September the 
American forces encamped within three 
miles of Monterey. 



Every means of defence had been ex- 
hausted by the Mexicans. Forty-two 
heavy cannon were mounted on the city 
walls, the streets were barricaded, and 
the flat roofs and stone walls of the 
houses were arranged tor infantry. Each 
house was a separate fortress. A strongly 
fortified building of heavy stone, called 
the Bishop's palace, stood on the side ol 
a hill without the city walls, and on 
the opposite side of the city were re- 
doubts held by infantry and artillery. 

On the morning of the twenty-first 
of September the American artillery 
opened fire on Monterey, and the in- 
fantry advanced to carry the Mexican 
works. The brigade of General Quit- 
man carried a strong work in the lower 
part of the town, and at the same time 
General Butler, with a part of his 
division, forced his way into the town 
on the right. 

At the Citadel. 

During the night of the twenty-first 
the Mexicans evacuated the lower part 
of the city, but kept their hold upon 
the citadel and the upper town, from 
which they maintained a vigorous fire 
upon the American positions. At day- 
break, on the twenty-second. Worth's 
division, advancing in the midst of a 
fog and rain, carried the crest com- 
manding the Bishop's palace, and by 
noon had captured the palace itself. The 
guns of the captured works were now 
directed upon the enemy in the city 
below. 

The enemy had fortified the city so 
thoroughly that the Americans were 
not only forced to carry the various 
barricades in succession, but were com- 
pelled to break through the walls of the 
fortified houses, and advance from house 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



31 



to house in this way. One or two field 
pieces were drawn up to the flat roofs, 
and the Mexicans were driven from 
point to point during the twenty- 
second and twenty-third, until they 
were confined to the citaded and plaza. 
On the night of the twenty-third General 
Ampudia opened negotiations, and on 
the morning of the twenty-fourth surren- 
dered the town and garrison to General 



fierce charge than in volunteering to 
make a dangerous ride under fire, in 
search of ammunition. 

The next important engi<.gement oc- 
curred at Buena Vista, a village of 
Mexico, seven miles south of Saltillo, 
where on February 22d and 23d, 1847, 
five thousand United States troops un- 
der General Taylor defeated twenty 
thousand Mexicans under Santa Anna. 




LIEUT. UI^YSSES S. GRANT GOING FOR AMMUNITION AT MONTEREY. 



Taylor. The Americans lost four hun- 
dred and eighty-eight men, killed and 
wounded, in the storming of Monterey. 
The Mexican loss was much greater. 

General Grant, then an unknown 
young lieutenant, was in the battle of 
Monterey, and distinguished himself on 
account of " gallant and meritorious 
services." Several times during the 
battle he demonstrated his superior 
judgment and courage, not more in the 



The American loss in this battle was 
two hundred and sixty-seven killed and 
four hundred and fifty-six wounded. 
That of the Mexicans was over two 
thousand killed and wounded, includ- 
ing many officers of high rank. Taylor 
followed the Mexican army on the 
twenty-fourth, as far as Agua Nueva, 
and collecting their wounded, removed 
them to Saltillo, where they were at- 
tended by the American surgeons. 



62 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



The victory of Buena Vista was de- 
cisive of the war. It saved the valley 
of the Rio Grande from invasion by 
a victorious Mexican army, and enabled 
the expedition of General Scott against 
Vera Cruz to proceed without delay to 
the accomplishment of its objects. It 
also greatly disheartened the Mexican 
people, and during the remainder of the 
year Taylor's army had nothing to do 
^nt tQ hold the country it occupied. 

Scott's Expedition. 

The expedition under General Scott 
sailed from New Orleans late in No- 
vember, 1846, and rendezvoused at the 
island of lyobos, about one hundred 
and twenty-five miles north of Vera 
Cruz. The plan of operations for this 
army was very simple — to capture Vera 
Cruz and march to the city of Mexico 
by the most direct route. At length 
everything being in readiness, the ex- 
pedition sailed from lyobos Island, and 
on the morning of the ninth of March, 
1 847, the army, thirteen thousand strong, 
landed without opposition at a point 
selected by General Scott and Commo- 
dore Connor a few days before. The 
city and vicinity had been thoroughly 
reconnoitered, and the troops were at 
once marched to the positions assigned 
them by the commander-in-chief. 

Vera Cruz is the principal seaport of 
Mexico, and contained at the time of 
the siege about fifteen thousand inhabi- 
tants. It was strongly fortified on the 
land side, and towards the Gulf was de- 
ffended by the Castle of San Juan de 
Ulloa, the strongest fortress in America, 
with the exception of Quebec. 

On the tenth of March the invest- 
ment of the city was begun by General 
Worth, and the American lines were 



definitely established around the city 
for a distance of six miles. During the 
day, and for several days thereafter, 
bodies of Mexicans attempted to harass 
the besiegers, and a steady fire was 
maintained upon them by the guns of 
the castle and the city as they worked 
at their batteries. The American works 
being completed, and their guns in 
position. General Scctt summoned the 
city of Vera Cruz to surrender, stipula- 
ting that no batteries should be placed 
in the city to attack the castle unless 
the city should be fired upon by that 
work. 

The demand was refused by General 
Morales, who commanded both the 
city and the castle, and at 4 o'clock on 
the afternoon of the twenty-second of 
March, the American batteries opened 
fire upon the town. The bombardment 
was continued for five days, and the 
fleet joined in the attack upon the cas- 
tle. The city suffered terribly ; a num- 
ber of the inhabitants were killed, and 
many buildings were set on fire by 
the shells. 

A Decisive Victory. 

On the twenty-seventh the city and 
castle surrendered, and were promptl}^ 
occupied by the Americans. Over five 
thousand prisoners and five hundred 
pieces of artillery fell into the hands of 
the victors. The garrison were required 
to march out, lay down their arms, and 
v/ere then dismissed upon their parole. 
The inhabitants were protected in their 
civil and religious rights. The sur- 
render was completed on the morning 
of the twenty-ninth. 

Having secured the city and the cas- 
tle. General Scott placed a strong gar- 
rison in each, and appointed General 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



63 



Worth governor of Vera Cruz. He 
tlien prepared to march upon the city 
of Mexico, and on the eighth of April 
the advance division, under General 
Twiggs, set out from Vera Cruz towards 
Jalapa. Deducting the force left to 
garrison Vera Cruz, Scott's whole army 
amounted to but eighty-five hundred 



men. 



Makes a Stand at Cerro Gordo. 

Santa Anna had not found the conse- 
quences to himself of the battle of Buena 
Vista as bad as he had expected. He 
had succeeded in pursuading his coun- 
trymen that he had not been defeated in 
that battle, but had simply retreated for 
want of provisions, and they had agreed 
to give him another trial. He had 
pledged himself to prevent the advance 
of the Americans to the capital, in the 
event of the fall of Vera Cruz, and with 
the aid of those of his countrymen who 
were willing to support him had quelled 
an insurrection at the capital, and had 
strengthened his power to a greater de- 
gree than ever. With a force of twelve 
thousand men he had taken position at 
Cerro Gordo, a mountain pass at the 
eastern edge of the Cordilleras, to hold 
the American army in check, and had 
fortified his position with great skill 
and care. 

General Twiggs halted before the 
Mexican position to await the arrival 
of General Scott, who soon joined him 
with the inain army. The Mexican 
lines were carefully reconnoitered, and 
on the eighteenth of April General 
Scott, avoiding a direct attack, turned 
the enemy's left, seized the heights com- 
manding their position, and drove them 
from their works with a loss of three 
thousand pnsoners and forty-three pieces 



of artillery. Santa Anna mounted a 
mule, taken from his carriage, and fled 
leaving the carriage and his private pa- 
pers in the hands of the Americans. 
Besides their prisoners, the Mexicans 
lost over one thousand men in killed 
and wounded. Scott's loss was four 
hundred and thirty-one killed and 
wounded. 

The passes on the direct road to the 
city had been well fortified and garri- 
soned by the Mexicans, but the country 
upon the flanks had been left unpro- 
tected, because Santa Anna deemed it 
utterly impossible for any troops to pass 
over it, and turn his position. El Penon 
the most formidable of these defences, 
was reconnoitered by the engineers, 
who reported that it would cost at 
least three thousand lives to carry it. 
Scott thereupon determined to turn El 
Penon, instead of attacking it. The 
city and its defences were carefully rec- 
onnoitered, and it was discovered that 
the works on the south and west were 
weaker than those at any other points. 

Americans Push Forward. 

General Scott now moved to the left, 
passed El Penon on the south, and by 
the aid of a corps of skillful engineers 
moved his army across ravines and 
chasms which the Mexican commander 
had pronounced impassable, and had 
left unguarded. General Twiggs led 
the advance, and halted and encamped 
at Chalco, on the lake of the same name. 
Worth followed, and passing Twiggs, 
encamped at the town of San Augustin, 
eight miles from the capital. 

As soon as Santa Anna found that 
the Americans had turned El Penon, 
and had advanced to the south side of 
the city, he left that fortress and took 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



position in the strong fort of San An- 
tonio, which lay directly in front of 
Worth's new position. Northwest of 
San Antonio, and four miles from the 
city, lay the little village of Churubusco, 
which had been strongly fortified by the 
Mexicans. A little to the west of San 
Augustin was the fortified camp of 
Contreras, with a garrison of about six 
thousand men. 

In the rear, between the camp and 
the city, was a reserve force of twelve 
thousand men. The whole number of 
Mexicans manning these defences was 
about thirty-five thousand, with at least 
one hundred pieces of artillery of va- 
rious sizes. 

Desperate Struggle. 

General Scott lost no time in moving 
against the enemy's works. General 
Persifer F. Smith was ordered to attack 
the entrenched camp at Contreras, while 
Shields and Pierce should move between 
the Camp and Santa Anna at San An- 
tonio, and prevent him from going to 
the assistance of the force at Contreras. 

At three o'clock on the morning of 
August 20th, in the midst of a cold rain. 
Smith began his march, his men hold- 
ing on to each other, to avoid being 
separated in the darkness. He made 
his attack at sunrise, and in fifteen min- 
utes had possession of the camp. He 
took three thousand prisoners and thir- 
ty-three pieces of cannon. 

The camp at Contreras having fallen. 
General Scott attacked the fortified vil- 
lage of Churubusco an hour or two 
later, and carried it after a desperate 
struggle of several hours. General 
Worth's division stormed and carried 
the strong fort of San Antonio, and 
General Twiggs captured another im- 



portant work. The Mexicans outnum- 
bered their assailants three to one, and 
fought bravely. Their efforts were in 
vain, however, and late in the after- 
noon they were driven from their de- 
fences, and pursued by the American 
"cavalry to the gates of the city. 

How the Victories Were Won. 

These two victories had been won 
over a force of thirty thousand Mex- 
icans by less than ten thousand Amer- 
icans, and a loss of four thousand killed 
and wounded and three thousand prison- 
ers had been inflicted upon the Mexican 
army. The American loss was eleven 
hundred men. 

Santa Anna retreated within the city, 
and on the twenty-first of August the 
American army advanced to within 
three miles of the city of Mexico. On 
the same day Santa Anna sent a flag of 
truce to General Scott, asking for a sus- 
pension of hostilities, in order to ar- 
range the terms of peace. The request 
was granted, and Mr. Trist was de- 
spatched to the city, and began nego- 
tiations with the Mexican commission- 
ers. 

After protracted delays, designed to 
gain time, the Mexican commissioners 
declined the American conditions, and 
proposed others which they knew would 
not be accepted. Thoroughly disgusted, 
Mr. Trist returned to the American 
camp, and brought with him the intelli- 
gence that Santa Anna had violated the 
armistice by using the time accorded 
him by it in strengthening his defences. 
Indignant at such treachery, General 
Scott at once resumed his advance upon 
the city. 

The Mexican capital was still de- 
fended by two powerful works. One of 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



65 



wounded — nearly one fourth the whole 
American force engaged. 



these was Molinodel Rey, " The Kmg's 

Mill," a foundry, where it was said the 

church bells were 

being cast into 

cannon; the 

other was the 

strong castle of 

Chapultepec. 

General Scott 
.resolved to make 
his first attack 
upon Molino del 
Rey, which was 
held by fourteen 
thousand Mexi- 
cans. It was 
stormed and car- 
ried on the 8th 
of September, 
after a severe con- 
test by Worth's 
division, four 
thousand strong. 
This was regard- 
ed as the hardest- 
won victory of 
the war. The 
Mexicans were 
nearly four times 
as numerous as 
the Americans, 
and their posit ion 
was one of very 
great strength. 
The Americans 
fought principal- 
ly with their ri- 
fles and muskets, 
their artillery be- 
ing of but little 
use to them, ow- 
ing to the nature general SCOTT ENTERING THE CITY OF MEXICO. 

• of their position." Their loss was seven | The castle of Chapultepec stood on a 
hundred and eighty-seven killed and | steep and lofty hill, and could not be 
5 




66 



WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 



turned. If won at all, it must be by a 
direct assault. On the twelfth of Sep 
tember the American artillery opened 
fire upon it, and reduced it almost to 
ruins. On the morning of the thirteenth 
a determined assault was made by the 
Americans, and the castle was carried 
after a sharp struggle. 

Santa Anna's Retreat. 

During the night of the thirteenth 
Santa Anna, with the remains of his 
army, retreated from the city, leaving 
the authorities to make the best terms 
they could with the conquerors. The 
city officials presented themselves be- 
fore General Scott before daybreak, and 
proposed terms of capitulation. The 
general replied that the city was already 
in his power, and that he would enter 
it on his own terms. The next day, 
September 14, 1847, the American army 
entered the city of Mexico, occupied 
the grand .'■quare, and hoisted the stars 
and stripes over the government build- 
ings. Santa Anna retreated with four 
or five thousand men from the capital 
to the vicinity of Puebla, which was 
besieged by a Mexican force. The city 
contained eighteen hundred sick Amer- 
icans, and was held by a garrison of 
five hundred men under Colonel Childs. 
This little force held out bravely until 
the arrival of a brigade from Vera Cruz, 
under General L,ane, on its way to re- 
inforce General Scott. Lane drove off 
Santa Anna's army, and relieved Puebla 
on the eighth of October. Ten days 
later Santa Anna was reported to be 



collecting another force at Alixo. Lane 
set out immediately for that place, 
reached it by a forced march, and dis- 
persed the Mexicans beyond all hope of 
reunion. 

Immediately after the capture of the 
city of Mexico Santa Anna resigned 
the presidency of the republic in favor 
of Senor Pena y Pena, president of the 
Supreme Court of Justice, but retained 
his position as commander-in-chief of 
the army. The fall of the city was fol- 
lowed by the inauguration of a new 
government, one of the first acts of 
wliich was to dismiss Santa Anna from 
the command of the army. He at 
once left the country, and fled to the 
West Indies. 

Return of Peace. 

3n the Fourth of July, 1848, Presi- 
Polk issued a proclamation announcing 
the return of peace. By the terms of 
the treaty the Rio Crandewas accepted 
by Mexico as the western boundary of 
the United States and of Texas, and 
that republic ceded to the United States 
the provinces of New Mexico and Upper 
California. For this immense territory 
the government of the United States 
agreed to pay to Mexico the sum of fif- 
teen millions of dollars, and to assume 
the debts due by Mexico to citizens of 
the United States, amounting to the 
sum of three and a half millions of 
dollars. The treaty having been rati- 
fied, the American forces were promptly 
withdrawn from Mexico, and the two 
countries resumed friendlv relations. 



CHAPTER V. 

The Great Civil War. 



(^ I HE agitation upon the question of 
* I slavery began about the year 
1830, when William Lloyd Gar- 
rison, of Boston, commenced the publi- 
cation of a paper entitled " The Liber- 
ator." The great object of this publica- 
tion was to secure the immediate aboli- 
tion of slavery throughout the United 
States. It should be said that there 
were advocates of this measure at the 
beginning of the century, including 
especially the Quakers. 

As the anti-slavery sentiment grew 
In the North the people of the South 
more and more became alarmed, and pre- 
pared to defend the institution which 
they considered essential to their own 
well-being. The result was that the 
two great sections of our country be- 
came in a large measure estranged, and 
the statesmen of both North and South, 
fearing that the disruption of the Union 
would finally follow, exerted them- 
selves to the utmost to prevent such a 
calamity. 

In 1 82 1 Missouri was admitted into 
the Union, but the present limits of the 
State were not established till 1 836. Its 
admission was preceded by a long and 
bitter political controversy between the 
representatives of the North and South, 
the former resisting its entrance as a slave 
State. The discussion resulted in the 
famous "Missouri Compromise," a mea- 
sure strongly advocated by Henry Clay, 
under which compact it was agreed 
that slavery should be forever exchided 
from all that part of Louisiana north of 
36° 30' latitude, except Missouri. It 
■was not foreseen at the time that this 



measure would have an important bear- 
ing upon the territory of Nebraska, in- 
cluding what is now the State of Kan- 
sas, but such was the case. 

In 1850 California, to which the dis- 
covery of gold had attracted a rush of 
immigrants, was admitted as a non-slave 
State. To pacify the South, the Fugi- 
tive Slave Law was passed, which di- 
rected the Federal authorities to return 
slaves who had escaped to the North, 
and also required citizens wherever the 
slaves were found to aid in their cap- 
ture. The North took great umbrage 
at the enactment of this law, and the 
anti-slavery sentiment grew rapidly. 

Struggle in Kansas. 

In 1854, in defiance of the Missouri 
Compromise, the principle of " squatter 
sovereignty" was applied to the two 
great territories lying north of 36 de- 
grees and as far as 30 degrees — Kansas 
and Nebraska. The spirit of the North 
was fully aroused, and anti-slavery men 
poured into Kansas with the intention 
of making it a free State, as Congress 
had already decided that the question of 
slavery should be left to the inhabitants 
to settle by themselves. The State gov- 
ernment was organized on a non-slave 
basis, though it was not admitted as a 
State until 1861. 

This struggle led to the formation of 
a new party in the North opposed to 
slavery, although such opposition had 
already shaped the policy to a large ex- 
tent of the Whig party. The new party 
adopted as its name that of Jefferson's 
old party — Republican — and grew wiih 

67 



68 



THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



marvellous rapidity. In 1856 a Presi- 
dential election was held ; the Demo- 
cratic candidate, Buchanan, was elected 
by a majority of the electoral vote, but 
Fremont, the Republican candidate, had 
a large popular vote. 

About this time an incident occurred 
that greatly inflamed the anti-slavery 
sentiment of the North. In his opinion 
on what was known as the Dred-Scott 
Case, Chief Justice Taney stated, among 
other things, that a slave, or the de- 
scendant of a slave, could not be a citizen 
of the United States, and the Missouri 
Compromise was unconstitutional. 

Party Divided. 

In i860, the Democratic party was 
split in two sections, the soutliern or 
ultra- slavery Democrats and the north- 
ern or conservative Democrats. The 
southerners demanded recognition by 
the party of the duty of Congress to 
protect slavery ; the northern Demo- 
crats could not possibly agree to this. 
In the face of a divided party, the Re- 
publicans elected their candidate, Abra- 
ham lyincoln, President. The North 
was now much stronger in population 
and wealth and growing stronger every 
day. If the South remained in the 
Union it would soon be at the mercy 
of the North. The extreme southern 
States determined to secede, hoping no 
doubt that the northwest and California 
would either join them or remain neu- 
tral. But the newer States had been 
largely settled by foreigners, to whom 
the United States had been a star of 
hope for many years, until frugality en- 
abled them to emigrate thither. They 
had no state pride, but were intensely 
loyal to the country which was their 
adopted home. 



The northwest, California, and after 
a struggle, Missouri, Kentucky and 
Maryland, cast in their lot with the 
North and East. About eight or nine 
millions in the South stood against 
twenty or twenty -two millions in the 
North, with the resources of wealth 
and increased production on the side of 
the latter. 

Mr. lyincoln was inaugurated March 
4, 1 86 1. In his address he declared that 
he had neither the right nor the desire 
to interfere with slavery where it already 
existed ; that no State could lawfully go 
out of the Union ; and t\nt he should 
maintain the laws and constitution of 
the United States to the best of his 
ability. The new administration was 
beset with difficulties on every side, and 
the condition of affairs seemed almost 
desperate. Many of those who for years 
had guided the "ship of state," and 
who understood its workings, were now 
foremost in advocating secession. 

Appalling State of Affairs. 

Mr. Lincoln's officers were new to the 
business of the Federal government. 
The treasury, by defalcation, was nearly 
bankrupt. Few troops were within call ; 
and the army had been almost broken 
up by the surrender of detached forces 
in the Confederate States, and the cap- 
ture of munitions of war. The vessels 
of the navy were sailing or at anchor in 
distant waters, and numerous officers of 
both the army and the navy were re- 
signing their commissions on the ground 
that they owed allegiance first to the 
States from which they came. 

Seven States had already revolted, 
and others were ready to swell the num- 
ber upon the first attempt to enforce 
the Federal authority. The public offi- 



THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



69 



ces were largely occupied by persons 
in sympathy with the secession move- 
ment, and every step taken by the new 
g^overnment was known at once to the 
leaders of the Confederacy, and to crown 
all, Mr. lyincoln was beset by a vast 
horde of office-seekers eager to take ad- 
vantage of the change of administration. 
The President waited a month and 
then notified Governor Pickens, of South 
Carolina, that he should send supplies 
to Fort Sumter at all hazards. This 
announcement precipitated an attack 
upon the fort. Major Anderson was 
first summoned to surrender, but he re- 
fused. At daybreak on the morning of 
April 12, 1 86 1, the Confederacy began 
its open conflict with the United States. 
All the batteries around the fort opened 
fire upon it; the fort replied, and the 
bombardment continued for thirty-six 
hours without loss of life on either side. 
The ammunition of the fort was then 
exhausted, and the works inside were 
on fire. 

The Old Flag Lowered. 

Thereupon the United States flag, for 
the first time in its history, was lowered 
to insurgent citizens, and the garrison 
capitulated. This event aroused the 
North as if from a trance. Until now, 
the mass of the people had refused to 
believe in real danger ; but the first 
shock of arms thoroughly convinced 
them that the South was ready to fight, 
and could not be curbed without war. 
It did more than this. In the Northern 
States party distinctions were for a 
jtime swept aside ; there was but one 
party worth the name — the party for 
the Union. The Southern States were 
no longer " erring sisters" to be coaxed 
by concessions. The whole North called 



loudly for the full exercise of the Fed- 
eral power to compel the South to obe- 
dience at the point of the bayonet. 

The day after the evacuation of Fort 
Sumter, President Lincoln called for 
75,ooo volunteers for three months. 
April 1 5. The response was so promptly 
made that the first Massachusetts troops 
began their march on the same day, 
and in a surprisingly short time the 
quota was full ; nay, it could have been 
filled three or four times over, and the 
many who were refused felt a keen dis- 
appointment at not being allowed to 
bear arms in defense of the Union. 

State Sovereignty. 

. the South, also, the effect of the 
first conflict was correspondingly great. 
To the ignorant masses it did not seem 
possible that any other power could be 
superior to that of their own State,- 
while the more intelligent classes had, 
from their childhood, imbibed the doc- 
trine that State sovereignty was tht 
foundation of civil liberty. Hence all 
felt bound to follow the lead of their 
State; and when the President of the 
new Confederacy issued his call for men 
it was answered, as in the North, hy 
overflowing numbers. 

Those southern States which had 
wavered were now compelled to make 
their choice. When Mr. Lincoln called 
for troops the Governors of Arkansas, 
Virginia, North Carolina and Tennes- 
see refused to obey. North Carolina 
and Arkansas then seceded, and joined 
the Confederacy. In Tennessee and 
Virginia "military leagues" were 
formed with the Confederate States, by 
which Confederate troops were allowed 
to take possession of their territory, and 
by their aid the question of secession 



70 



THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



was submitted to popular vote. Thus 
the secession of these two States was ac- 
complished in part, but not wholly. 

The people of the Alleghany moun- 
tains were loyal to the Union ; in east- 
ern Tennessee they aided the Federals 
as much as possible ; the opposition to 
secession was so strong in the western 
counties of Virginia that the inhabitants 
refused to obey the convention which 
passed the ordinance; they chose a leg- 
islature which claimed to be the true 
3-overnment, and at last formed a new 
State which was admitted to the Union 
in 1863, under the name of West Vir- 
ginia. Even thus curtailed, Virginia 
was a most important accession to the 
Confederacy ; it increased its military 
strength greatly, and at once became 
the chief battle-ground of the war. 

The Theatre of Oonflict. 

The Confederate government was 
moved from Montgomery to Richmond; 
and since Washington was separated 
only by the Potomac from the Confed- 
eracy, it was clear that the great con- 
test would be fought in the country 
which lay between the two capitals. 
Moreover, Virginia was the richest and 
greatest of the slave States, and fur- 
nished the Southern army with its 
ablest leaders, many of whom — such as 
Lee, Jackson, Johnson, and Ewell — 
were opposed to secession, but thought 
it right to shape their own course by 
that of their State. 

There was a strong anti-union element 
in Missouri, Kentucky, Maryland, and 
Delaware, and the most momentous re- 
sults — involving, doubtless, the success 
of the Union cause — were involved in 
the action they would now take. Aside 
from Virginia, Missouri was the most 



powerful slave State, and her geograph- 
ical position, with that of Kentucky 
and Maryland, was of incalcuable mili- 
tary importance. Had these three 
States united with the Confederacy it 
might have won the prize for which it 
was contending — independence. 

Missouri, however, did not break 
away, though the issue was for some 
time doubtful with her. Delaware cast 
her lot with the Union. In Maryland 
and Kentucky efforts were made to 
maintain neutrality, but they were soon 
induced to declare in favor of the Fed- 
eral government. Kentucky, however, 
had some of her sons in the Southern 
ranks, among whom was John C. Breck- 
inridge, a former Vice-President of the 
United States, who became an officer 
in the Confederate army. 

The Federal government was in no 
want of men, but the action of Secre- 
tary Floyd had almost stripped it of 
arms to equip them. Agents were sent 
abroad to purchase guns, private manu- 
factories were worked day and night to 
produce them, and in a short time the 
administration was able to call more 
men into the field. 

Not a Warlike People. 

The N orthern people were unmilitary 
in their habits and thoughts. They 
had a militia, but it was poorly organ- 
ized. The Mexican war had drawn 
few volunteers from this section, and 
the United States army was very small 
and imperfectly equipped. The early 
action of the Confederates also had 
weakened it. There was, however, a 
greater population to draw from than 
at the South . There was also a wider 
range of industry to supply the neces- 
sary funds to carry on the war. 



THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



71 



South Carolina had, on the 14th of 
[anuary, 1861, declared in her legisla- 
ture that any attempt to reinforce Fort 
Sumter would be regarded as a declara- 
tion of war. April nth Governor Pick- 
ens, in a note to Major Robert i\nder- 
son, commanding Fort Sumter, ordered 
him to deliver up the fort. Anderson 
answered that he had no power to com- 
ply, and, as already stated, refused. 

The navy -yards of Brooklyn received 
orders to have 
vessels in rea- 
diness to send 
supplies to the 
l^eleaguered 
Fort Sumter, 
in Charleston 
harbor. Sup- 
plies were sent 
by the Star of 
the West, but 
did ijot arrive 
in season, the 
vessel having 
retreated from 
the liarbor af- 
ter beiug fired 
upon. These 
were, in real- 
ity, the first I^ORT SUMTER 
hostile shots from the South on the 
National flag, though the attack on 
Fort Sumter is regarded as the begin- 
ning of the war. 

The attack was conducted by General 
G. T. Beauregard, favorably known in 
connection with the Mexican War, now 
appointed to the chief commaud of the 
Confederate forces. The assault was 
opened at four o'clock of April 12th, 
when was fired the first gun of the ter- 
lible Civil War which ensued. The 
fort wp.s surrendered on the afternoon 



of the 13th, after Anderson and hi? 
brave band of seventy men had fought 
for thirty-six hours, exposed to death 
by shot, shell and conflagration. 

Major Anderson reported that he 
" marched out on the 14th with colors 
flying and drums beating, bringing 
away company and private property, 
and saluting our flag with fifty guns." 
The men carried away the flag they 
had defended. The same day and hour. 




IN THE BEGINNING OF THE WAR. 

four years afterwards, that memorable 
flag was restored, and again waved over 
the shattered remains of Fort Sumter. 

The first blood of the war was shed 
in the streets of Baltimore. Massachu- 
setts and Pennsylvania troops on their 
way to Washington were attacked by 
a Baltimore mob, April 19, 1861, and 
some of the soldiers killed. The popu- 
lace, which syuipathized with the South, 
declared that no Northern troops should 
pass through the city. The railroad 
was blocked up, bridges were burned, 



72 



THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



telegraph wires were cut- a"d all direct 
communication with the North was 
stopped, until the President sent a mili- 
tary force from Annapolis to occupy 
Baltimore and keep the road open. In 
^ a short' time the active hostility of the 
'people was overcome, and the national 
capital made secure. 

By July 4th the Confederates had 
pushed their forces as far as Manassas 
Junction, about thirty miles from Wash- 
ington. Their line of defence was al- 
ready marked out, and its length has 
been estimated at eleven thousand miles, 
including the Atlantic and gulf coasts. 
It comprised the left bank of the Poto- 
mac from Fortress Monroe nearly to 
Washington ; from thence it extended 
to Harper's Ferry, on through the 
mountains of western Virginia and the 
southern part of Kentucky, crossing 
the Mississippi a short distance below 
Cairo. From this point its direction was 
through southern Missouri to the east- 
ern border of Kansas ; then southwest, 
through the Indian territory, and along 
the northern boundary of Texas to the 
Rio Grande. 

Reliance on Cotton. 

The area contained within this in- 
terior line and the sea-coast was about 
800,000 square miles, with a popula- 
tion of over 9,000,000. It comprised, 
also, the territory devoted to the raising 
of cotton, an article necessary to the 
manufacturing interests of the world. 
It was upon this production that the 
South relied largely for aid ; all the 
munitions of war could be procured in 
exchange for it ; and she believed it 
would be a powerful factor in prevent- 
ing the blockading of her ports. 

In consideration of this fact, and also 



that the Confederate line of sea-coast 
was over three thousand miles in length, 
with but one port of refuge for a block- 
ading fleet about the middle of the line, 
it scarcely seemed possible that a block- 
ade could be maintained with any 
marked degree of success. Neverthe- 
less, the President issued a proclama- 
tion, April 19, 1 861, declaring a block- 
ade of all the southern parts, and the 
Federal government proceeded to pur- 
chase and arm a large number of mer- 
chant vessels. But it could not at once 
bring together a navy powerful enough 
to keep vessels from entering or leaving 
the blockaded ports. The South not 
only sent out vessels laden with cotton 
to the West Indies and to Europe, but 
received in return military supplies of 
all kinds. 

To Destroy Oommerce. 

Upon the appearance of Mr. lyin coin's 
blockade proclamation, Mr. Davis issued 
one also, granting letters of marque 
and reprisal to private vessels, against 
the commerce of the United States. 
The governments of Great Britain and 
France now issued proclamations of 
neutrality, thus making the contest be- 
tween the North and the South a civil 
war, according to subsequent decisions 
of the Siipreme Court. 

At the meeting of Congress, July 4, 
1 86 1, the Republicans had a majority 
in both branches, the free States and 
border States only being represented. 
The House voted to devote its time 
solely to the business connected with 
the war. It supported the President's 
proclamation closing the Southern ports 
against commerce. Bills were passed 
to define and punish conspiracy against 
the United States, and to confiscate all 



THE GREAT CIVIL WAR 



73 



private property, including slaves, em- 
ployed against the Federal government ; 
to authorize a loan; to call out 500,000 
volunteers, and to appropriate money 
for the army and navy. 

Durinsf this session occurred the first 
battle of Bull Run, July 21, 1861. Gen- 
eral Scott had been appointed com- 
ma -.der-in-cliief of the Union forces. 
The first military movements were in 
the mountains of western Virginia, and 
the success of the Union army there 
led many people to suppose that in a 
short time the rebellious States would 
be compelled to obedience. Mr. Seward, 
who was Secretary of State, was espec- 
ially cheerful, and promised that the 
war should be over in ninety days. 
The newspapers and people generally 
urged an immediate movement upon 
Richmond. 

First Great Battle. 

Very few had any knowledge of the 
difficulties before them, and General 
Scott, pressed by public opinion, gave 
the order to advance. This resulted in 
the first serious battle of the war. The 
Union forces were defeated, and re- 
treated in a panic upon Washington. 
Both armies were yet so new in military 
training that the Confederates gained 
nothing from their success. 

This disaster opened the eyes of the 
North, and the country settled down 
into a more serious temper. Congress 
was, more than ever, stimulated to in- 
creased energy, and pledged itself to 
vote any amount of money and any 
number of men necessary to maintain 
the Union. Propositions to consider 
negotiations for peace were constantly 
offered by extreme Democrats, and as 
constantly rejected by large majorities, 



on the ground that negotiation with 
armed rebellion was unconstitutional. 

General Scott, having resigned the 
command of the Northern armies on 
account of his age and infirmity, was 
succeeded by General George B. Mc- 
Clellan, whose successful campaign in 
western Virginia had given him a high 
reputation throughout the army. He 
had a genius for organization, and pos- 
sessed the unbounded confidence of 
the people. He immediately set about 
forming the first great army of the war 
— the Army of the Potomac — at Alex- 
andria, in preparation for a second ad- 
vance. 

Impatience of the North. 

But the advance was delayed much 
too long to suit the impatience of the 
people and the administration ; and as 
the winter 1861-62 passed away with- 
out any forward movement, the expres- 
sions of dissatisfaction became louder 
and more general. The Confederacy 
also spent the summer and autumn of 
1 86 1 in organizing its northern Army 
of Virginia, under General Beauregard. 

In the autumn of 1861 a portion of 
General Stone's command on the Upper 
Potomac was sent on a reconnoissance 
into Virginia, under Colonel Baker, 
and, being attacked by the Confederate 
general, Evans, at Ball's Bluff, was dis- 
astrously defeated. Colonel Baker was 
among the killed. Although Missouri 
had not seceded, a strong party, with 
which the governor was acting, wished 
to carry it over to the Confederac)-. A 
Confederate camp near St. lyouis was 
broken up by Captain Lyon, of the 
regulars, and the St. Louis arsenal was 
saved to the government. The State 
was afterward invaded by Confederates 



74 



thk great civil war. 



from Arkansas, who were defeated by 
Lyon (now a general) at Booneville, 
June 17th, and by Sigel at Carthage, 
July 5th. 

A large force of Confederates under 
McCullough and Price attacked Lyon 
at Wilson's Creek, August loth. Lyon 
was killed, and his command fell back 
toward the center of the State. Price 
with 20,000 men then attacked Lex- 
ington, which was garrisoned by 2,000 
Federal troops under Colonel Mulligan. 
After an heroic defense of three days the 
little garrison was compelled to surren- 
der, September 20th, after their water 
supply had been cut off for forty-eight 
hours. General Fremont was now ap- 
pointed to the command of the western 
department He drove Price into the 
southwest corner of the State, and was 
about to give battle when he was super- 
seded by General Hunter, November 
2d. Hunter retreated to St. Louis, 
with Price in pursuit ; but in a fort- 
night Hunter was replaced by Halleck, 
and Price was driven into Arkansas. 

Families Divided. 

Kentucky, like Missouri, was dis- 
tracted by dissensions among its own 
people, and by armies on both sides. 
General Polk of the Confederate army 
occupied Hickman and Columbus, 
towns on the Mississippi. There was 
also a Confederate force at Belmont, 
Missouri, opposite Columbus. Ulysses 
S. Grant, recently appointed a brigadier- 
general of volunteers, now first came 
into notice. He drove the Confederates 
out of Belmont November 7th, but was 
unable to hold the town because it was 
commanded by the fortifications of 
Columbus. 

From the beginning of the war, the 



Federal government was einbarrassed 
by the question of fugitive slaves. Con- 
gress had passed the act confiscating 
slaves employed in service hostile to 
the United States. While General Fre= 
mont was in command of the forces of 
the West, he had issued a proclamatior.i 
declaring the slaves of Missouri Con-* 
federates free men, but this was counter- 
manded by President Lincoln, who did 
not wish to estrange those slave-holders, 
especially in Kentucky, who were still 
loyal to the Union. 

How Slaves Were Treated. 

In Virginia, General Benjamin F. 
Butler had declared that slaves were 
"contraband of war," and, therefore, 
liable to confiscation by military law. 
But as yet the disposition of the North 
was to subdue the South witliout inter- 
fering with slavery ; and some Union 
commanders restored to their- masters 
the slaves who had escaped into the 
Federal lines. 

Formidable expeditions were fitted 
out to recapture Southern harbors. A 
combined land and naval force, under 
General Butler and Commodore String- 
ham reduced and occupied two forts at 
Hatteras Inlet, North Carolina, at the 
entrance to Albemarle and Pamlico 
Sounds, August 29th, and Port Royal 
harbor, near Beaufort, South Carolina, 
was secured through the reduction of 
Forts Walker and Beauregard by the 
fleet under Commodore Dupont, No- 
vember 7, and a land force under Gen- 
eral Thomas W. Sherman. These suc- 
cesses were of great value to the Federal 
government. They not only closed im- 
portant Southern ports, but they furn- 
ished convenient stations for the block- 
ading fleet. 



THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



75 



The "paper blockade," as it had 
been called, was soon made a very 
effective one along the whole length of 
the Southern coast from the Potomac 
to the Rio Grande, an achievement 
which by many had been deemed im- 
possible. Still, in spite of the watch- 
fulness of the Federal navy, several 
Confederate men-of-war and privateers 
sailed out of port, and did much dam- 
age to merchant ships. The practice of 
" running the blockade " became a very 
profitable business ; and notwithstand- 
ing the danger of capture, which was 
the case in many instances, the profits 
on a single successful voyage were so 
great that adventurers found they could 
afford to take the risk. 

Seeking Recognition Abroad. 

As has been stated, the South de- 
pended largely upon assistance from 
abroad, and the southern leaders still 
clung to the hope that they could pre- 
vail upon Great Britain and France to 
recognize the independence of the Con- 
federacy. Two commissioners, there- 
fore, Messrs. Mason and Slidell, were 
sent by the Confederate government to 
London and Paris. They ran the block- 
ade, made their way to Havana, and 
then embarked for England in the 
British mail-steamer Trent. 

Some distance out, the Trent was 
overhauled by an American man-of-war 
under Captain Wilkes, the two commis- 
sioners were taken off, November, 1861, 
and carried to Boston harbor, where 
they were imprisoned in Fort Warren. 
This action, which was illegal and un- 
authorized, caused great excitement in 
England, and came very near causing 
a collision between the two countries. 
Lord Palmerston made a peremptory 



demand for the surrender of the prison- 
ers. The American government had 
already disavowed the act of Captain 
Wilkes, which, though it was justified 
by the British claim of the ' ' right of 
search," was contrary to American 
principles. The Confederate envoys 
were tlierefore promptly released and 
sent to England. 

Jast before this occurrence President 
Lincoln requested two confidential 
agents to visit France and England in 
order to help the Federal cause and 
avert the danger of foreign war by their 
influence with the governments and 
with persons of distinction. The per- 
sons selected for this delicate and im- 
portant trust were Archbishop Hughes, 
of New York, and Mr. Thurlow Weed. 
They sailed in November, and rendered 
very valuable service, Mr. Weed in Eng- 
land, and the Archbishop in France. 

War of Vast Magnitude. 

At the beginning of 1862 the war had 
assumed vast proportions. The num- 
ber of men under arms on both sides 
was nearly a million. The Confederates 
held possession of the Mississippi river 
from the Gulf of Mexico to the southern 
boundary of Kentucky, and occupied a 
chain of strong positions extending 
thence through Tennessee and Ken- 
tucky to the southwestern corner of 
Virginia. Between the Alleghanies and 
the Blue Ridge was the fertile Shenan- 
doah Valley, often disputed by both 
armies. 

At the east the Confederates were 
posted in great force between the Poto- 
mac and the Rappahannock. Now that 
Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky and 
Missouri had been saved to the Union, 
it was certain that the battle v/ould be 




ARREST OF MASON AND ^UDE!.!. ON THE BRITISH STEAMER "TRENT" 

76 



THE GREAT CIVII. WAR. 



77 



fought out in the territory to the south 
of them. The plan of the Federal au- 
thorities was to open the Mississippi 
and penetrate the Confederate line at 
the west, while at the same time 
McClellan attacked Richmond, and a 
land and naval force continued the pro- 
cess of capturing the southern ports on 
the Atlantic coast. 

Simon Cameron, who had been Secre- 
tary of War, resigned January 20, 1862, 
and was succeeded by Edwin M. Stan- 
ton. All the Federal armies were to 
move simultaneously on the 22d of Feb- 
ruary, Washington's birthday, but this 
order could not be strictly carried out. 

Grant in the West. 

The first advance was made in the 
West. General Grant had entered Ken- 
tucky from Illinois, and succeeded in 
securing the mouths of the Tennessee 
and Cumberland rivers, two streams 
which were to serve as military high- 
ways by which the Federal armies were 
to penetrate into the heart of the Con- 
federacy. The chief Confederate posi- 
tions between the Mississippi river and 
the Alleghan}'' mountains were Fort 
Henry on the Tennessee, Fort Donel- 
son on the Cumberland (both in Ten- 
nessee), and Bowling Green and Mill 
Spring in Southern Kentucky. This 
\me of defence was in command of 
General Sydney Johnston, with head- 
quarters at Bowling Green. Here he 
was confronted by General Buell's 
army, the middle one of the three great 
Federal armies, which came to be known 
as the Army of the Cumberland. 

Forts Henry and Donelson formed the 
centre of the Confederate line, and was 
confronted by Grant, whose troops after- 
wards formed the army of the Tennes- 



see. In January, 1862, General Thomas 
with the left of Buell's force thoroughly 
defeated the Confederate right at Mill 
Spring. General Grant, aided by the 
river fleet under Commodore Foote, 
now assailed the centre. Fort Henry 
was first attacked and reduced by the 
gunboats before Grant had time to in- 
vest it. The combined forces then as- 
saulted Fort Donelson, which, after a 
brave resistance, was captured Febru- 
ary 1 6th with 15,000 prisoners. 

The centre of the Confederate line 
was now pierced, and Johnston and Polk 
were compelled to retreat for fear of 
being cut off. Columbus, Bowling 
Green and Nashville were evacuated, 
and the whole of Kentucky and most 
of Tennessee were in the hands of the 
Federals. General Buell occupied Nash- 
ville ; a strong Union .party showed it- 
self in Tennessee, and Senator Andrew 
Johnson was appointed Military Gov- 
ernor of the Slate. 

A Terrible Battle. 

The Confederates formed their second 
line of defense along the railroad from 
Memphis to Chattanooga, and began 
massing their forces at Corinth, The 
armies of Grant and Buell were to unite 
and attack the enemy in his new posi- 
tion. Grant moved up the Tennessee 
river and halted at Pittsburg I^anding, 
or Shiloh, about twenty miles from 
Corinth, there to await the arrival of 
Buell. Here Johnston made a brilliant 
attack upon him with the intention of 
crushing him before Buell could come 
up. 

A terrible battle was fought April 

6th and 7th, in which the Confederate 

leader, who was one of the slain, came 

i very near effecting his purpose. But 



78 



THE GREAT CIVII. WAR 



the Federal forces, though driven back 
at nearly every point, stubbornly re- 
sisted, and at the close of the first day 
Buell's advance guard came upon the 
scene. The next morning Grant, now 
reinforced, assumed the offensive ; and 
after a fight of several hours, the Con- 
federates were driven back to Corinth. 
While these operations were taking 



captured for .everal weeks afterwards on 
account of the slow advances of General 
Halleck, who had assu/ned command 
of the Federal forces at Ihat point. 

Meanwhile a fleet under Farragut and 
Porter, with a land force under Butler, 
had been sent to attack New Orleans. 
Farragut ran past the batteries and forts 
at the entrance of the river, attacked 




IR'OxM-CLAD 

place in Tennessee, Commodore Foote 
with his gunboats entered the Missis- 
sippi with a small army under Pope, 
and captured Island Number Ten on 
the day of Grant's victory at Shiloh. 
Two months later Fort Pillow was 
abandoned by the Confederates, and 
Memphis at once fell into the hands of 
the Union army. The victory at Shiloh 
decided the fate of Corinth, an import- 
ant railroad center, though it was not 



GUNBOAT. 

and destroyed the ironclads which met 
him, and captured New Orleans, which 
was occupied by the army under But- 
ler. Farragut with a part of his fleet 
then pushed up the river, clearing away 
all obstacles, passed the batteries at 
Vicksburg, and met the Federal gun- 
boats under Captain Davis above. Thus 
the war in the West had been, so far, 
marked by an almost unbroken series 
of victories for the Federal armies. 



THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



79 



At the northern boundary of the 
State of Mississippi the Union advance 
stopped for a time ; but all was held that 
had been won. To gain control of the 
great river, it was necessary to take 
Vicksburg, with its outpost, Port Hud- 
son, which, between them, commanded 
the entrance to the Red river, and thus 
kept open the communications of the 
eastern part of the Confederacy with its 
States of Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas. 

Moving on Vicksburg. 

To capture Vicksburg would cut off 
these States, and greatly cripple the 
fighting power of the Confederate gov- 
ernment. The occupation of Chatta- 
nooga was also necessary to the success 
of the Union arms. It would open the 
way into Georgia, and prevent the Con- 
federates from recovering any of the 
lost ground in Tennessee. 

While the South had met with de- 
feat in the West, it was encouraged by 
a suc^-ss in Hampton Roads. The 
Confederates had taken the " Merri- 
mac," a former frigate of the United 
States navy, and transformed her into 
an iron-clad ram, with sloping sides 
and huge iron beak. On March 8, 
1862, this strange-looking craft entered 
Hampton Roads and attacked the Feb- 
eral fleet lying there, which consisted 
of five wooden ships of war. The Mer- 
^^rimac destroyed the Cumberland, and 
also compelled the frigate Congress to 
surrender. At night she went back 
to Norfolk. 

The next morning she was seen com- 
ing out again to complete the work of 
destruction. Suddenly the Monitor, 
a turreted iron -clad vessel, advanced to 
meet her, and after an obstinate engage- 
ment of several hours the Merrimac 



was compelled to retire. These encoun- 
ters were remarkable as the first engage- 
ments between iron-clads and wooden 
vessels, and between two iron-clads. 
The result caused a revolution in the 
navies of the world ; the day of wooden 
war-vessels was seen to be over, and all 
the great powers began at once the con- 
struction of iron and steel vessels. 

The military operations in Virginia 
during the year 1862 offered a strong 
contrast to the course of events in the 
West. This was owing partly, no doubt, 
to the superior ability of the Confeder- 
ate commanders, as compared with their 
antagonists, partly, because on the 
Union side military affairs were too 
much intermingled with politics. 

Jackson Repulsed. 

While General McClellan was organ- 
izing a splendid army of 200,000 men 
near Washington, General Banks was 
ordered to occupy the Shenandoah val- 
ley. He began his advance in Febru- 
ary, and having, as he supposed, cleared 
the valley of the enemy, set out with 
his own corps proper to join McClellan. 
As soon as he was gone, General Jack- 
son, popularly known as " Stonewall 
Jackson," hastened to attack the divi- 
sion of Shields which remained in the 
valley. After a desperate battle at 
Kearnstown, March 23d, Jackson was 
compelled to retire. Banks returned 
to the valley, and Shields was sent to 
join McDowell at Fredericksburg. 

General Fremont now approached 
from the West, in order to unite with 
Banks near Stanton. To prevent this 
Jackson formed the plan of attacking 
the Federal forces in detail. He nearly 
succeeded in getting into the rear oi 
the main body with a much largei army 



80 



THE GREAT CIVIIv WAR. 



than Banks could muster. By a hur- 
ried retreat Banks reached and crossed 
the Potomac, with the Confederate cav- 
ah-y in close pursuit. Shields hastened 
back to the valley, but his advance 
guard was defeated at Port Republic, 
June 8th, by Jackson, who, the same 
day, had checked Fremont at Cross 
Keys. 

Having thus saved the valley to the 
Confederates, and obliged the govern- 
ment at Washington to detain for the 
defense of the capital a large body of 
troops which McClellan greatly needed 
for other duty, Jackson joined the Con- 
federate army in front of Richmond. 

McOlellan's Advance. 

General McClellan coc^ntrated the 
.i.rmy of the Potomac between Wash- 
ington and Manassas, as if intending 
to advance against Richmond by that 
route. He then withdrew his forces 
and went by water to Fortress Monroe 
in order to advance up the peninsula 
between the James and York rivers. 
Here he was held in check for a month 
by Johnston at Yorktown, and when 
McClellan was ready to take the place, 
the Confederates retreated toward Rich- 
mond. The Union forces followed, and 
both armies concentrated around Rich- 
mond. 

McClellan gained the battles of Wil- 
liamsburg, May 5 th, and West Point, 
May 9th, and advanced within seven 
miles of the city. A panic broke out 
in the Southern capital, and the Con- 
federate Congress adjourned in haste. 
It was just at this time that Stonewall 
Jackson, by his brilliant and daring 
exploits in the Shenandoah Valley, 
obliged the Federal government to 
keep in front of Washington a corps 



under McDowell which was about to 
co-operate with McClellan by way of 
Fredericksburg. 

The movements of McClellan in- 
volved the separation of the two wings 
of his army by the little river Chicka- 
hominy, which by a sudden rise was 
changed into a wide stream. The Con- 
federates under Johnston at once at- 
tacked the Union left wing at Fail 
Oaks and Seven Pines. A fierce battle 
ensued, lasting two days; the result, 
however, was a Union victory. John- 
ston was wounded, and was succeeded 
by Robert E. Lee, who retained com- 
mand of the army of Virginia during 
the rest of the war. 

Plan Had to be Changed. 

The absence of A/[cDowell, who was 
expected to support McClellan' s right, 
compelled a change ii>' the whole plan 
of operations. Although lyee had been 
repulsed in an attack on the Federal 
lines at Mechanicsville, June 26th, he 
fell upon them again at Gainer "VEiU the 
day following, in overwhelming force, 
and drove them across the Chicka- 
hominy with severe loss. Jackson had 
now reinforced Lee, and McClellan was 
cut off from his base of supplies on 
York river. Unable to re-unite his 
wings and regain his base, the Union 
general decided upon the difficult ma- 
noeuvre of establishing another base on 
the James river. 

While effecting this change, the 
Union troops were hard pressed by Lee 
and Jackson, who, during the period 
from June 26th to July ist, attacked 
them at Golding's Farm, Savage's Sta- 
tion, White Oak Swamp, Glendale, etc., 
and finally at Malvern Hill, where the 
Confederates were signally repulsed. 



THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



81 



This was the last of a series of engage- 
ments known as the "Seven Days' Bat- 
tles," in the course of which McClellan 
lost over 15,000 men. lyce suffered al- 
most as much. The Union army had 
now reached the James river, and estab- 
lished itself in a position from which it 
could not be driven. 

Designs on Washington. 

Lee and Jackson then turned their 
attention toward Washington, which 
was defended by an army under General 
Pope. Pope's forces stretched along 
the Rappahannock and Rapidan to the 
Shenandoah Valley. General Banks 
held a position at the western end of 
the line, and was attacked by Jackson 
at Cedar Mountain. Lee followed close 
behind, and the two generals forced 
Banks back and then attacked Pope. 
McClellan received orders from Wash- 
ington to join Pope, and a portion of 
his forces came up in time to take part 
in the second battle of Bull Run, Au- 
gust 29th. Pope's army was put to 
rout, Washington was threatened and 
the whole country was wild with ex- 
citement. 

Lee now led his victorious army across 
the upper Potomac and entered Mary- 
land. McClellan, gathering up the 
remnants of the two defeated armies, 
followed and confronted the Confeder- 
ates at Antietam creek. A desperate 
struggle took place, September 17th. 



It left each army exhausted, but the 
victory remained with the Union forces. 
The Confederates recrossed the Poto- 
mac and retired up the Shenandoah 
Valley. 

The administration was dissatisfied 
with McClellan's course, and his com- 
mand was given to General Burnside. 
The new commander at once moved 
toward Richmond, proposing to cross 
the Rappahannock at Fredericksburg. 
Here he found Lee posted upon the 
hills behind the town. Burnside crossed 
the river, and, forming his army in 
three divisions, attempted to storm the 
heights, December 13th. It was a day 
of terrible slaughter for the Federal 
troops. They were repulsed with the 
loss of twelve thousand men, the army 
was demoralized, and retreated to the 
north side of the river. Burnside was 
then superseded by General Hooker. 

The North Discouraged. 

The close of 1862 thus found the op- 
posing armies in nearly the same posi- 
tions as at the beginning of the war. 
At the North gloom and discourage- 
ment prevailed. At the State elections 
held in the autumn there was a majority 
against the administration in several of 
the Northern States, and the result of 
the campaigns on the Potomac gave 
great strength to the peace party, which 
believed that the attempt to subjugate 
the South ousfht to be abandonod. 



CHAPTER VI. 



End of the Great Civil War. 



IN Jane, 1862, the great Union force 
at Corinth was divided, Buell's 
marchi'.ig eastward to seize Chat- 
tanooga, while Grant's remained at Cor- 
inth till it should be ready to start for 
Vicksburg. The campaign was so 
badly managed by Halleck that the 
Confederates, under Bragg, seized Chat- 
tanooga before Buell's arrival. They 
were thus enabled to press him so vigor- 
ously that he had to be largely rein- 
forced from Grant's army. 

Thus weakened. Grant was unable to 
advance for several mouuhs. During 
the summer of 1862 the Confederates 
made a great effort to repair the disas- 
ters they had suffered on the Tennessee 
and Mississippi rivers by an invasion of 
Kentucky. An army under Kirby 
Smith moved from Knoxville, East 
Tennessee, while another, under Bragg, 
marched from Chattanooga. The Con- 
federate general. Smith, defeated Gen- 
eral Nelson near Richmond, Kentucky, 
August 30th, and advanced toward the 
Ohio, threatening Cincinnati. General 
L/Cw Wallace, however, compelled him 
to fall back to Frankfort. 

Bragg in the meantime hastened 
toward the city of Louisville. Buell, 
leaving Nashville, by forced marches 
reached the place one day ahead of 
Bragg. Being reinforced, he slowly 
pushed the Confederates back. Bragg 
formed a junction with Smith at Frank- 
fort, and four days later a severe but 
indecisive battle was fought at Perry- 
ville, October 8th. The Confederates 
then retreated through Cumberland Gap. 

During Bragg's campaign, the Con- 
82 



federate army in Mississippi unds*' Gen^ 
eral Van Dorn made an attempt to turn 
Grant's left wing at Corinth, a :d thus 
force him back down the Tennessee 
River. This wing was commanded by 
General Rosecrans, who defeated Price 
at luka, a few miles from Corinth, Sep- 
tember 19th. On October 4th Van 
Dorn and Price together attacked Cor- 
inth, but were repulsed by Rosecrans 
with a loss of five thousand men, and 
pursued forty miles. 

Hard Fighting in Tennessee. 

Soon after this Rosecrans superseded 
Buell in command of the army of the 
Cumberland. Bragg had advanced to 
Murfreesborough, in Central Tennessee. 
There Rosecrans attacked him, Decem- 
ber 31st, and a bloody battle was fought, 
in which 40,000 men were engaged on 
each side, and each lost more than 
10,000. This engagement is generally 
known as the battle of Stone River. It 
was indecisive. On January 2, 1863, 
Bragg renewed the attack with great 
vigor, but this time he was signally de- 
feated, and compelled to retire to Chat- 
tanooga. 

While these battles were being fought 
Grant had begun his first movement 
against the strong and important post 
of Vicksburg, on the Mississippi. His 
plan was to march from Jackson, Missis- 
sippi, while Sherman, with his 40,000 
men, and Porter, with a fleet of gun- 
boats, descended the river from Mem- 
phis. The movements were made ac- 
cording to this arrangement, but Van 
Dora's cavalry succeeded in getting in 



END OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



83 



Grant's rear and cutting off his sup- 
plies. This compelled Grant to abandon 
his march to Jackson. Sherman and 
Porter attacked the bluffs north of 
Vicksburg, but were repulsed with ^ 
:3eavy loss on December 29th. Hearing 
/ Grant's misfortune, they returned to 
Memphis, 

After Hatteras Inlet to Pamlico Sound 
had been captured, it was next resolved 
to attack the Confederate position on 
Roanoke Island, which commands the 
passage between Pamlico and Albe- 
marle Sounds. A land and naval expti- 
dition under General Burnsideand Com- 
modore Goldsborough took Hie forts 
and batteries of the island February 8, 
1862, captured a Confederate flotilla, 
occupied Newberne, North Carolina, 
March 14th, and reduced Fort Macon, 
at Beaufort, April 25th. 

Capture of Fort Pulaski. 

Expeditions from Port Royal under 
Commodore Dupont took possession of 
Darien and Brnnswick, Georgia, and of 
Jacksonville, Fernandina, and St. Au- 
gustine, Florida. April 11, 1862, Gen- 
eral Gilmore captured Fort Pulaski, on 
the Savannah River. Thus the port of 
Savannah was completely closed, al- 
though no effort was made for some 
time to occupy the city. 

During the movement of the armies 
in 1862, Congress had not been idle. It 
was chiefly occupied in measures con- 
nected with the prosecution of the war. 
Its most far-reaching action was in the 
provision for a uniform national cur- 
rency. At the beginning of the war 
the government had borrowed large 
sums of money to defray expenses, and 
it continued to borrow as new demands 
arose. The result was similar to that 



which occurred in the Revolutionary 
War. The promises to pay became less 
valuable as compared with gold, which 
was the standard of value throughout 
the civilized world. 

The banks in the several States could 
no longer obtain gold without paying a 
high price for it: andatthe end of 1861 
they suspended specie payments- In 
order to provide a currency for the peo- 
ple, a bill was passed by Congress early 
in 1863 authorizing the issue of notes 
by the United States Treasury. These 
notes received the popular name of 
"greenbacks," from the color of the 
paper on which they were printed ; and 
to insure their success they were de- 
clared by Congress to be " legal tender," 
February 25, 1862. Early in 1863 Con- 
gress passed an act establishing national 
banks. Heretofore the States had in- 
corporated all banks, and the bills of 
each bank were seldom current except 
in its own neighborhood. By the na- 
tional banking system, the banks were 
to be organized, and the United States 
bonds deposited in Washington. 

Special Legislation. 

The banks were then permitted to 
iriue notes up to ninety per cent, of the 
value of the bonds deposited, and the 
notes, being thus secured, became cur- 
rent in every part of the country. A 
homestead bill was passed, which as- 
signed public lands to actual settlers at 
reduced rates. Congress also prohibited 
sla\ery in the District of Columbia; 
slaves of insurgents were ordered to be 
confiscated ; and the army was forbid- 
den to surrender fugitive slaves to their 
masters. It provided for the construc- 
tion of a Pacific railroad and telegraph, 
and began a further development of the 



84 



END OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



system of granting public lands to rail- 
way corporations. 

The abolition sentiment had spread 
very rapidly in the North, and it had 
now become supported by the military 
needs of the hour. At the beginning 
of the conflict the Union leaders and 
people generally had not favored any 
interference with slavery, but circum- 
stances had proved their position to be 
untenable. President L<incoln, who 
watched anxiously every movement, 
was convinced that the time had come 
when the Federal government could 
no longer attempt to carry on the war 
successfully and spare the system of 
sla^'ery. 

Vexed Question of Slavery. 

He therefore announced, September, 
1862, that unless the revolting States 
should return to their allegiance by Jan- 
uary 1 , 1 863, he should declare the slaves 
in these States to be free. It was a formal 
notice given out of respect to law ; no 
one seriously expected that it would be 
regarded by the Confederate States. 
And it was not. They only grew more 
firm in consequence of the action taken. 
On the ist day of January, 1863, in ac- 
cordance with his notice, the President 
issued his celebrated Proclamation of 
Emancipation. 

This act caused much discussion. Mr. 
Ivincoln could not, legally, issue such a 
declaration, for the Constitution gave 
him no authority to abolish slavery. But 
he acted on the principle of military 
necessity, advocated by John Quincy 
Adams in his speech of April 14, 1842, 
in which he said: "Whether the war 
be civil, servile, or foreign, I lay this 
down as the law of nations: I say that 
the military authority takes for the time 



the place of all municipal institutions, 
slavery among the rest. Under that 
state of things, so far from its being true 
that the States where slavery exists have 
the exclusive management of the sub- 
ject, not only the President of the United 
States, but the commander of the army 
has power to order the universal eman- 
cipation of slaves." 

The events of the preceding summer 
had shown that the war was far from 
being at an end. The cutting off of the 
cotton supply had been a general calam- 
ity, and the distress produced in conse- 
quence created a fear lest England and 
France should unite in an attempt to 
put an end to the contest. But the 
proclamation changed all this. By it 
the struggle was converted into a cru- 
sade against slavery, and in this light 
foreign intervention was now simply 
impossible, owing to Great Britain's 
attitude towards slavery. 

Negro Regiments. 

Moreover, should the Federal govern- 
ment be successful, the question of 
slavery would practically be settled for- 
ever, for its abolition would be certain 
when the Union was re-established. 
One of the first results of the act was 
the formation of regiments of negro sol- 
diers. An attack made by one of these 
regiments, under Colonel Shaw, upon 
Fort Wagner, in Charleston harbor, 
though unsuccessful, showed so much 
bravery that the prejudice against negro 
soldiers disappeared, and great numbers 
were enrolled. 

General Hooker spent three months 
in reorganizing and strengthening the 
Army of the Potomac. At the end of 
April, 1863, he began his march toward 
Richmond with 120,000 men. Sending 




BATTLE OF CHANCELLORSVILLE-TACKSON'S ATTACK ON THE RIGHT WING. 



8'3 



END OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



the sixth corps, under Sedgwick, to cross 
the Rappahannock below Fredericks- 
burg, he threw his main body across the 
river a few miles higher up, and before 
Lee understood his purpose he had ad- 
vanced to Chancellorsville. Here Lee 
won one of the most marked of his vic- 
tories, May I to 4, with only one-half 
as many men as Hooker commanded. 

Battle and Heavy Losses. 

Jackson made a magnificent attack 
upon the Union right, taking it by sur- 
prise, and drove it back in confusion. 
Sedgwick, on the left, had carried the 
lieights of Fredericksburg, and was 
pushing on toward Chancellorsville, 
when the disaster on the right enabled 
Lee to face him with the main Confed- 
erate force. Sedgwick was compelled 
to retire during the night which fol- 
lowed the 4th of May, and Hooker re- 
crossed the Rappahannock the next 
night. Hooker's loss was 16,000 ; Lee's 
was 12,000 ; but the Confederates fur- 
ther sustained a severe disaster in the 
death of Stonewall Jackson. 

Lee now repeated the manoeuvre he 
had practiced after defeating General 
Pope. Turning Hooker's right flank, 
he pushed on through the western part 
of Maryland into Pennsylvania, so as to 
threaten Philadelphia, Baltijnore, and 
Washington. There was intense alarm 
at the North, and reinforcements were 
hurried into Pennsylvania from all 
quarters. In consequence of a disagree- 
ment with General Halleck, Hooker 
resigned the command of the Army of 
the Potomac, and it was given to Gen- 
eral George G. Meade. 

The hostile armies, each in full 
force were now moving in parallel 
lines, with the Blue Ridge and South 



Mountain range between them. On the 
1st of July they came into collision at 
Gettysburg. A tremendous battle was 
fought, la-^ting until the close of Julv 
3d. It resulted ia the defeat of Lee, 
with a loss of about 23,000 men; 
Meade's loss was about the same. This 
battle was one of the greatest of modern 
times, the loss on both sides being very 
heavy in proportion to the whole num- 
ber engaged. It was also the turning 
point of the Civil War. 

The South was never able to collect 
so fine an army again, and never re- 
covered from the exhaustion of the Get- 
tysburg campaign. Lee moved slowly 
back to his old position on the Rapidan, 
where he and Meade held each other in 
check until the following spring. Many 
in the North were inclined to believe 
that Lee's former successes had been 
due to Stonewall Jackson's ability, and 
that he had lost his prestige upon the 
death of that brave commander. But 
the campaign of 1864 was to prove the 
contrary. 

Grant's Victory at Vicksburg. 

On the next day after the battle of 
Gettysburg, General, Grant gained a de- 
cisive victory on the Mississippi. Hav- 
ing failed in several attempts to take 
Vicksburg from the North, he now de- 
termined to transfer his army to the 
south side of this strongly- fortified place. 
To do this it was necessary to cross the 
river, march down its west bank, cross, 
again below Vicksburg, and march up 
the east bank, while the fleet, which 
had run past the batteries of Vicksburg 
after the capture of New Orleans, would 
have to pass them again in order to 
transport the army over the river and 
protect the crossing. 



END OF THE GREAT CIVIIv WAR. 



This plan was carried out in April. 
Commodore Porter performed his task 
successfully under a heavy fire, and on 
the 29th of April opened a cannonade 
upon Grand Gulf, at the mouth of the 
Big Black River, where it had been de- 
termined to attempt a crossing. The 
Confederate batteries here proving too 
strong, the fleet ran past them also, and 
the crossing was made at Bruinsburg, a 
few miles below. Grant now pushed 
rapidly forward. The Confederates were 
beaten at Port Gibson, and compelled 
to evacuate Grand Gulf. McPherson 
and Sherman captured Jackson, the cap- 
ital of Mississippi, and a place of great 
military importance, on account of its 
railway connections. 

Surrenders After Long Siege. 

The Union army then turned, fell 
upon the Confederate general, Pember- 
ton, who had marched out of Vicks- 
burg to unite with Johnston, defeated 
him at Champion Hills May i6th, and 
at the crossing of the Black River May 
17th, and at last shut him up in Vicks- 
6urg. After a siege of forty -five days 
Pemberton surrendered, and the great 
Confederate stronghold of the West, 
with 27,000 prisoners, fell into the 
hands of the victorious Federals. 

Port Hudson, u.nder siege at the same 
time, could no longer hold out, and the 
Mississippi, as President lyincoln said, 
"ran unvexed to the sea." This was 
the heaviest blow that the Confederacy 
had as yet received ; its whole western 
,one was now virtually conquered, and 
it became possible to concentrate greater 
Union forces against its middle and 
eastern zones. The news of Gettysburg 
ind Vicksburg made the Fourth of July, 
1S63, a day of rejoicing in the North, 



and of mourning in thousands of be- 
reaved homes. 

The Vicksburg campaign marked the 
decline of the Coniederate fortunes in 
the West, as the Gettysburg campaign 
did in the Bast. In the meantime the 
people had learned to give a more care- 
ful attention to the welfare of the sol- 
diers who were bearing the brunt of the 
conflict. The Sanitary Commission, the 
Christian Commission, and other volun- 
tary associations, had been organized, 
and were doing a grand work for the 
moral and physical needs of the men in 
the field ; and this care was not confined 
solely to Northern troops, but was often 
extended to the Confederates as well. 

The expenses of the national govern- 
ment ^or prosecuting the war now 
amounted to $2,000,000 per day on an 
average, and notwithstanding the heavy 
taxation imposed upon the country, the 
debt had increased to $500,000,000 by 
June, 1862 ; during 1863 it was double 
that amount; by June, 1864, it had 
grown to $1,700,000,000, and at the end 
of August, 1865, it attained its max- 
imum, $2,845,907,626. 

Money Carefully Spent. 

But the best of care and judgment 
was exercised in the use of these vast 
expenditures. The army was constantly 
supplied with improved weapons and 
munitions of war ; the blockading fleets 
were kept in perfect order, and every- 
thing was done to insure the success of 
the Union arms. 

As early as April, 1862, the Confed- 
erate Congress had passed a conscrip- 
tion act, enrolling in the army all adult 
white males below a certain age, but as 
the war went on the demand for men 
I became continually greater, and the 



END OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



conscription was made more sweeping. 
Toward the end of the war every white 
man between the ages of seventeen and 
fifty-five was held liable to military ser- 
vice, and in practice the only limit was 
physical incapacity. 

The Federal government also was 
compelled to take almost a similar 
course. In March, 1863, Congress passed 
an act for the enrollment of all able- 
bodied male citizens between the ages 
of eighteen and forty-five, and the Pres- 
ident was authorized to make drafts for 
military service, those between twenty 
and thirty-five to be first called upon. 
Under this law a call for 300,000 troops 
was made in May. As the full number 
was not made up by volunteering a draft 
was ordered to supply the deficiency. 
The first attempts to carry it out re- 
sulted in forcible resistance in many 
places, the most notable being the 
'' draft riots" in New York city in July, 
just after the battle of Gettysburg. 

Riots in New York. 

These riots lasted four days in that 
city. During this time New York was 
in the hands of a lawless mob, man\- 
shocking murders were committed and 
^2,ODO,ooo worth of property was de- 
stroyed. All opposition was at length 
put down, but exemptions and substitute 
purchases were freely permitted, and 
the States endeavored to fill their re- 
spective quotas as far as possible by 
offering bounties as a stimulus to x'olun- 
t'^^ring. 

After his renowned victory near Mur- 
freesboro, Rosecrans remained quiet for 
a period, preparing for a new campaign. 
Late in June he began a series of skill- 
ful mo\'ements against Bragg which 
compelled the Confederate general to 



fall back upon Chattanooga. Early in 
September Rosecrans forced him to 
evacuate the place by threatening his 
communications. The Union general 
followed him across the Tennessee river 
and was thus beyond the strong posi- 
tion of Chattanooo^a. General Bragfor, 
having been heavily reinforced from 
Virginia, turned at Chickamauga creek 
to give battle. 

The Heroic Thomas. 

A severe engagement was fought, 
September 17-20, 1863, in which Long- 
street, who had come to the aid of Bragg, 
routed the right of the Union forces; 
but the wonderful skill and bravery 
of General Thomas, who commanded 
the left wing, saved the Federal army 
and secured its retreat to Chattanooga. 
Bragg, having gained possession of the 
mountains around the place, cut off" al- 
most all avenues of further retreat and 
laid siege to Chattanooga. The govern- 
ment at Washington had committed 
the mistake of dividing the Union 
forces, for while Rosecrans was left *.o 
face an army greatly superior in num- 
bers, under General Bragg, General 
Burnside was sent into east Tennessee 
with an independent command. 

Bragg was now so sure of Rosecrans' 
defeat that lie dispatched Longstreet 
with apart of his army to attack Burn- 
side at Knoxville. In October Rose- 
crans was superseded by Thomas, and 
Grant was put in command of all the 
western armies. He was joined at Chat- 
tanooga by two corps under Hooker from 
the Potomac. General Sherman came 
up from Vicksburg with a greater pari 
of the arm}' of the Tennessee. Bragg's 
positions on Lookout Mountain and 
Missionary Ridge were now assaulted, 



90 



END OP THE GREAT CIVIE WAR. 



The former was successfully stormed 
by Hooker, November 24tli, part of the 
fighting taking place amidst a thick 
mist which covered the summit, hence 
this has been called the "battle above 



ston. Longstreet raised the siege of 
Knoxville and retreated across the 
mountains into Virginia to join Lee. 

Many attempts had been made to re- 
duce Charleston, South Carolina, the 






' \m--- 




EONGSTREET'S ARRIVAL AT 
the clouds." On the next day Mission- 
ary Ridge was carried by the main 
army. Hooker on the right, Thomas in 
the centre and Sherman on the left. 
Bragg was driven from all his positions 
back to Dalton, and was soon after- 
ward superseded by General J. E John- 



BRAGG'S HEADQUARTERS. 

strongest, as well as the most important 
of the Southern seaports, but without 
success. At length Fort Wagner was 
taken, September 7tli, after a tremend- 
ous bombardment by the Federal fleet 
and Gillmore's batteries ; Fort Sumter, 
also, was reduced to ruins The block- 



•END OF THE GREAT CIVII. WAR 



91 



ading vessels were thus enabled to enter 
the harbor, and the port of Charleston 
was enth'ely closed. 

Taking advantage of every loophole 
in the British foreign enlistment act, 
the Confederate authorities had suc- 
ceeded in fitting out several formidable 
cruisers, which, in the course of the 
year 1863, did immense damage to 
American commerce. Whenever they 
were closely pursued by United States 
vessels they took refuge in neutral ports, 
and then put out to sea again upon the 
first favorable opportunity. The most 
active ones were the Florida, the 
Alabama and the Georgia. The Flor- 
ida, built at Liverpool, after hav- 
ing captured twenty- one vessels, was 
seized in the harbor of Bahia, Brazil, 
October, 1864. The Georgia was built 
at Glasgow, put to sea in April, 
but was captured after a short cruise 
by the United States frigate Niagara. 
The more important of the Confederate 
cruisers was the Alabama. She was 
built at Liverpool for the Confederate 
captain, Semmes. 

Allowed to Escape. 

The British government was urged 
by the American minister, Mr. Adams, 
to enforce its own laws, and prevent her 
going to sea ; yet she was allowed to 
set sail in July. After destroying more 
than sixty vessels, she was met by 
the United States steamer Kearsage, 
commanded by Captain "Winslow, oif 
Cherbourg, June 19, 1864, and after an 
hour's action the Alabama was sunk. 

At the beginning of 1864, several 
detached operations were carried on 
which, though attracting much atten- 
tion at the time, had but little direct 
bearing upon the closing campaigns of 



the war. General Sherman made his 
raid nearly across the State of Missis- 
sippi, destroying railroads, bridges and 
supplies. General Seymour, leading a 
Union expedition into Florida, was de- 
feated. General Banks was sent up the 
Red river to attack Shreveport, an(^ 
bring away cotton. The expeditioil 
ended in failure and disaster. 

General Rosecrans was appointed to 
command in Missouri. He succeeded in 
repelling an invasion by Price, who was 
finally driven from the State. General 
Forrest, with a Confederate force, made 
a raid into Tennessee and Kentucky, 
and captured Fort Pillow, April 12th, 
where a number of negro troops were 
massacred. 

New Commander-in-Chief. 

The success of Grant in the west had 
made him the chief figure in the war. 
In March, 1864, he superseded Halleck 
as commander-in-chief, with the rank 
of lieutenant-general. He at once took 
personal direction of the campaign 
against Richmond, while retaining 
Meade in immediate command. The 
army of the Potomac was re-organized 
in three corps, under Hancock, Warren 
and Sedgwick, to which was soon added 
another under Burnside, while General 
Philip Sheridan was called from the 
west, and appointed to the command of 
all the cavalry in the eastern army. 

Lee's forces, which comprised the 
flower of the Southern troops, had other-v. 
wise been divided into three corps, unl 
der Generals A. P. Hill, Bwell and 
Longstreet. Sherman had been left in 
command of the three v/estern armies 
of the Ohio, the Cumberland, and the 
Tennessee, and he was to oppose John- 
ston at Dal ton. According to arrange- 



92 



END OF THB GREAT CIVII, WAR. 



f 



ment, a simidtaneous advance was made in Georgia and 

Virginia, early in May. 
The army of the Potomac, numbering about 125,000 

men (nearly twice as many as IvCe's), 

crossed the Rapidan and entered the 

"Wilderness" on the other side. It 
was Grant's object to push through this 
difficult country as rapidly as possible 
and get between Lee's army 
and Richmond. In pursniuij ' 
the direct route through Fit d- *" 
ericks- ^ l ^ t 1 

burg to.... 1, ^^ ,, ^..; ..' . r^-'lV 

Rich- 
mond, 



\, 



[r If 











^ 



Af' Ht 



.>?«• I 



y 




the Union 
, " army encoun- 
tered a series of 
strong defensive po- 
sitions, of which I^ee 
availed himself with con- 
. ^^ '^1 p summate skill. The bat- 
->>^ ^'■^ "-^^^ began on the 5 th, and 
^,>«55>>i:i-^^ continued until the 12th 

without interruption, both 
WOUNDING OF GENERAL LONGSTREET BY sides fighting with the 

HIS OWN MEN. utmost bravery. 






KND OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR 



93 



It was during these engagements that 
General Longstreet was disabled by an 
unfortunate blunder of his own troops. 
They mistook him and his men for 
Union cavalry and fired a volley at 
them. Longstreet waved his hand and 
shouted to them to stop firing. They 
did so, but not until a bullet passed 
through his throat, coming out at the 
shoulder. He fell from his horse, and 



Anna and Cold Harbor In whic.i the 
Union losses were terrible. Having now 
reached the Chickahominy, and finding 
it impossible to break through Lee's 
lines of defense, Grant crossed the river 
and moving far to the right of his ad- 
versary, transferred his army beyond 
the James to assail Richmond from the 
south. 

This involved the reduction of the 




BATTLE OF COLD HARBOR. 



was believed to be dead. Such a 
calamity spread dismay for a time in 
the Confederate ranks. ■ Longstreet was 
only badly wounded and was disabled 
for the remainder of the campaign. 

Lee was steadily forced back, and on 
the 9th Grant was clear of the Wilder- 
ness with his forces concentrated near 
Spottsylvania court-house. Here there 
was furious and obstinate fighting for 
ten days, with scarcely any intermission. 
Then followed the battles of North 



strongly-fortified town of Petersburg, on 
the Appomattox, practically a part of 
the defenses of Richmond, from which 
it was twenty miles distant. It also 
brought the Federal lines into dangerous 
proximity to Lee's railroad communi- 
cations with the south. At this point, 
therefore, the Confederate commander 
stationed the best part of his troops, and 
stubbornly resisted all Grant's efforts to 
extend his lines further to the south- 
west or to reach the railroads. 



94 



END OF THE GREAT CIVIIv WAR. 



A long siege of Richmond and Peters- 
burg was now begun early in June, but 
neither army remained inactive. In 
July, Lee sent Early into the Shenan- 
doah valley, with a corps strong enough 
to menace Washington, hoping that 
Grant might be induced to call off 
troops from Petersburg. The chief re- 
sult of Early's movement was the burn- 
ing of Chambersburg, and the capture 
of a quantity of supplies. Grant put 
Sheridan in command of the valley, 
who defeated General Early at Win- 
chester, September 19th, and at Fisher's 
Hill two days later, after which he de- 
stroyed all the rich crops in the valley 
and carried off the cattle, so that the 
Confederates might not be tempted to 
"^epeat the raid. 

Battle of Oedar Creek. 

Br"-. Early, having obtained fresh 
troop, ""uddenly fell upon the Federals 
at Cedar Creek, October 19th, driving 
them back in great confusion. Sheridan 
was absent when the battle was fought, 
but, getting intelligence of it, he rode 
rapidly up the valley, rallied his men, 
who w^re, however, being enheartened 
by their respective commanders, and 
scattered Early's forces, which never 
met Sheridan again as a compact army 
during the remainder of the war. 

Meanwhile, Grant had succeeded in 
getting possession of a few miles of the 
Weldon railroad, upon which Lee de- 
rpended for transportation, but the Con- 
federate general brought his supplies in 
wagons round that portion held by the 
Federals. The two armies now re- 
mained in comparatively the same posi- 
tion until the following spring. 

The western campaign in 1864 began 
at the same time as Grant's movement 



in Virginia. Sherman advanced from 
Chattanooga with 100,000 men under 
Thomas, McPherson, and Schofield, 
against Johnston's force of 75,000. The 
objective point of the campaign was 
the capture of Atlanta, Georgia, a very 
strongly fortified place about one hun- 
dred miles south of Chattanooga, and 
the chief manufactory of the Confederate 
military supplies. Johnston, with his 
weaker force, dared not risk a regular 
battle, but he made the best use of vari- 
ous defensive positions which therough 
and mountainous country afforded. 

Sherman's Brilliant Tactics. 

By a series of masterly flank move- 
ments Sherman compelled him to evac- 
uate one position after another. On May 
14th the warrior-bishop, Leonidas Polk, 
was killed by an exploding sheik while 
standing with Johnston and Hardee on 
the crest of Pine Mountain. Severe 
battles were fought at Resaca, May 15th; 
Dallas, May 25th; Lost Mountain, June 
14th, and Kenesaw Mountain, June 27th. 
By the loth of July Johnston was in- 
trenched behind the defences of Atlanta, 
and the two armies were facing each 
other with the Chattahoochee river be- 
tween them. Johnston's retreat had 
been conducted with great skill, but he 
was now superseded by Hood, July 17th, 
who was known as a " fighting general." 
Hood at once proceeded to carry out the 
active policy of the Confederate govern- 
ment, and assumed the offensive. Before 
the end of the month he had made three 
furious assaults on the Union lines and 
was repulsed in every one of them. 

The Federals, however, sustained a 
heavy loss in the death of General Mc- 
Pherson. At length, by fine manoeuver- 
ing, Sherman succeeded in gaining the 



END OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



95 



fear of Atlanta, and cutting the supply 
railroads. This obliged the Confed- 
erates to retreat in all haste, and 
on the 2d of September, Sherman 
was able to telegraph to 
Washington that Atlanta 
was won, "% 'T^^- 



federacy. He moved northwestward 
by Tuscumbia and Florence into mi'^- 







DBATH OF GENFvRAL POLK. 

Hood, by the command of Davis, now 
made a fatal mistake, which materi- 
ally hastened the downfall of the Con- 



die TenneS' 

«^ce, thinking 

that Sherman 

would follow 

;^ ■■» . l^^wv///"' him in ordei 

' to d fend that State. But Sher 

111 in was no more to be controlled 

>\ this device than Grant had 

nil by Early's raid into the 

"^unandoah. He divided his 

mil , sending back part of it 

1111 1 r Thomas to take care of 

II) 1, while he himself prepared 

t<» continue his advance through 

>eorgia. Hood, moving north-. 

waru toward Nashville, was met 

and defeated at Franklin, No* 

vember 30th, with heavy loss, by Scho- 

field. The Confederate general arrived 

at Nashville with about 44,000 men. 



96 



END OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



The Union forces awaited him there 
behind the fortifications. Thomas, hav- 
ing completed his preparations, suddenly 
moved out of his works and fell upon 
the Confederate lines, December 15th. 
The battle lasted two days and ended 
"n the utter rout and demoralization of 
lood's forces. Thus one of the two 
great armies of the Confederacy was 
scattered, never again to be united. Of 
all the battles fought in the course of 
the war, this was the most complete 
victory. 

Presidential Election. 

While these things were going on, 
the presidential election of 1864 took 
place. Some of the more radical men, 
dissatisfied with what they called Mr. 
Lincoln's timid and irresolute policy, 
met in convention. May 31st, at Cleve- 
land, Ohio, and nominated John C. Fre- 
mont for the Presidency. Mr. Lincoln 
and Andrew Johnson were nominated, 
June fi^lij for President and Vice-Presi- 
dent by the Republican National Con- 
vention at Baltimore. 

The Democratic National Convention 
declared in its platform that the inabil- 
ity of the Federal government to restore 
the Union by war was demonstrated by 
four years of failure ; that the constitu- 
tion had been violated in all its parts 
under the plea of military necessity ; 
and that a cessation of hostilities ought 
to be obtained. It nominated George 
B. McClellan and George H. Pendleton 
as President and Vice-President. 

This declaration of the peace Democ- 
racy that the war was a failure, when 
all things were now pointing toward the 
final success of the North, caused many 
doubtful votes to be cast for the Repub- 
lican candidates, and assured their elec- 



tion. When the electoral votes were 
counted, Lincoln and Johnson had re- 
ceived 212; McClellan and Pendleton 
received 21. 

Sherman had burned Atlanta, de- 
stroyed the railroads and telegraphs in 
his rear, sent back the sick and wounded, 
and much of the baggage, and set out, 
November 14th, on his " famous march 
through Georgia." His army, 65,000 
strong, was spread out over a breadth of 
forty miles, subsisting mainly on the 
produce of the country. For a month 
scarcely anything was heard of him at 
the North, when he suddenly turned up 
at Savannah, Ga. He had met with but 
little opposition on his route. The Con- 
federates had numerous bodies of troops 
which might have been concentrated to 
oppose his march, but he had threatened 
so many points, and kept the enemy in 
so much doubt as to his objects, that 
they could not tell for which point he 
was making. 

A Christmas Gift. 

On December 13th Fort McAllister 
was taken by assault, and on the 20th 
Savannah was evacuated by the Confed- 
erates, Sherman sending the news of the 
captureto President Lincoln as a "Christ- 
mas gift." He also sent word that the 
Confederacy was nothing but a shell, 
and that he was ready with his victorious 
army to march northward. 

The only important ports, except Gal- 
veston, which remained open to the Con- 
federacy in the summer of 1864, were 
Mobile, in Alabama, and Wilmington, 
in North Carolina. The forts command- 
ing the entrance to Mobile bay were 
captured, August 5th, and the port was 
closed. On January 16, 1865, Wilming- 
ton, North Carolina, was taken by a 



END OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



97 



eombined land and naval force, under 
General Terry and Commodore Porter. 
On the day before tins event, Sherman 
had begun his northward march, pass- 
ing through Columbia to Fayetteville, 
North Carolina. 

This movement had forced the evacu- 
ation of Charleston and other coast cities, 
and their garrisons had been concen- 
trated under Johnston as a last hope. 
The military support of the Confederacy 
now rested on the army which lyce com- 
manded within the intrenchments of 
Richmond and Petersburg, and on the 
remnant of the western forces with which 
Johnston was trying to check Sherman's 
advance. Some sharp fighting took 
place north of Fayetteville, but Golds- 
borough was reached March 21st, and 
Johnston retreated to Raleigh. Sher- 
man pushed on after him, but events 
in Virginia were fast rendering a con- 
test in North Carolina unnecessary. 

Lee's Situation Desperate. 

While the Union army occupied Golds- 
borough, Sherman took a steamer on 
the coast and hurriedly visited the James 
river, where he met the President, Gen- 
eral Grant and General Meade, and ar- 
ranged with them the plan of operations 
for the future. During Sherman's march 
through North Carolina, Sheridan had 
led a column of cavalry up the Shenan- 
doah valley to destroy Lee's communi- 
cations in the rear of Richmond. He 
passed along the James river, doing- 
great damage to the canal and railroads 
and joined the main army in front of 
Petersburgjustas Sherman arrived there 
for his conference with the President 
and (rrant. 

The situation of Lee was now becom- 
ing desperate. He determined to aban- 
7 



don Petersburg and Richmond, move 
by way of Danville and effect a junction 
with Johnston, With this purpose he 
made one desperate attempt to break 
the center of the Union lines at Fort 
Steadman, intending under cover of the 
attack to withdraw his force. The ef 
fort failed, and Lee was repulsed with 
heavy loss. Grant resumed his attempts 
to push his lines further round to the 
south of Petersburg. 

Sheridan was put in command of the 
extreme left, assailing Lee's right at Five 
Forks, April ist, destroying the South- 
side railroad, and maintained his posi- 
tion. 

Three Fierce Assaults. 

The Confederate forts Alexander and 
Gregg made a stubborn resistance. For 
a time the fate of the Confederate Army 
of Northern Virginia depended on Fort 
Gregg ; for, if it could not be held until 
Lee had time to take a new position, 
his army was doomed. It repelled three 
assaults by the Union troops, but the 
fourth carried them over and into the 
works, where they found that, out of 
the two hundred and fifty comprising 
the garrison, only thirty were unhurt. 
All the rest were killed or wounded. 

To avoid being outflanked Lee was 
compelled to lengthen out his line, 
already too thin. The next morning, 
April 2d, Grant made a general as- 
sault and carried his army within the 
lines of the Petersburg defences. Lee 
retreated, with the intention of bringing 
his forces and Johnston's together for a 
final stand, while the advance guard of 
the Union army entered Richmond. 
The Confederate authorities hastened to 
escape to Danville, having first set fire 
to the shipping, tobacco warehouses, 
etc., at Richmond. 



98 



KNB OF THE GREAT CIVII, WAR. 



No time was lost in celebrations of 
the victory. Grant pressed on in the 
pursuit of Lee with all vigor. He had 
so disposed the Federal army that the 
escape of the Confederates was almost 
impossible. The Confederate forces 



9, 1865. The terms of surrender offered 
by Grant were very generous ; all pri- 




were headed 06 at Appon^attox Court 
House, where J <f surrendered, April 



GALI.ANT DEFENSE OF FORT GREGG, 
vate property belonging to officers and 
soldiers was to be retained, the men 
were even allowed to keep their horses, 
because," Grant said, "they would 
need them for the work ou their farms." 



END OF THE GREAT CIVIIv WAR. 



99 



Officers and men were at once set free 
on parole, with the understanding that 
so long as they did not violate their 
parole, nor break the laws, they would 
not be disturbed by the Federal gov- 
ernment. 

Sherman had begun his final opera- 
tions against Johnston when the news 
arrived of the surrender of Lee. John- 
^ston thereupon capitulated April 26 on 
much the same terms that had been ac- 
corded to the Confederate army in Vir- 
ginia after an unsuccessful effort at a 
more favorable settlement. All the 
other Confederate forces in the field also 
surrendered, and the great Civil War 
came to an end. The news was received 
with an outburst of joy at the North. 

End of the Great Struggle. 

Mr. lyincoln had begun his second 
term on March 4, 1865. At that time 
the end of the struggle was plainly near, 
and the President in his inaugural ad- 
dress had already expressed the hope 
that there would be a reconciliation be- 
tween the two sections. He said : "With 
malice toward none, with charity for 
all, with firmness in the right as God 
gives us to see the right, let us strive 
to finish the work we are in, to bind up 
the nation's wounds, to care for him 
who shall have borne the battle, and 
for his widow and for his orphans; to 
do all which may achie\ e and cherish 
a just and a lasting peace among our- 
selves and with all nations." 

The public rejoicings over the cap- 
ture of Richmond were clouded by the 
death of the wise and noble Ivincoln, 
He had gone to Ford's theatre on the 
evening of April 14, and was sitting in 
his box, when an actor named J Wilkes 
Booth entered unperceived and shot 

L«ff& 



the President through the head, crying : 
" The South is avenged. Sic semper 
tyrannis.^'' Almost at the same time 
one of Booth's accomplices named Payne 
attempted to assassinate Secretary Sew- 
ard, who was ill at home, and wounded 
him seriously, but not fatally. There 
had been a plot on the part of some des- 
perate characters when the Confederacy 
fell, to destroy the leaders of the Fed- 
eral government, but their plans werr 
accomplished in part only. 

Death of the Assassins. 

The chief parties implicated perished 
mx erably. Booth and Payne escaped 
for a time, but '^^ere soon caught. Booth 
was killed while resisting arrest. Payne 
and three others were hanged, and sev- 
eral persons concerned in the plot wen 
sentenced to imprisonment. 

The President lingered a few hours 
and died without giving any sign of 
consciousness. His death caused the 
deepest sorrow, not only in the North, 
but in the South as well, and through- 
out all the civilized world. He had 
won the abiding love and trust of the 
people, and his name will forever be 
linked with that of Washington ; for 
he was in many ways the second founder 
of his country. 

Jefferson Davis, while trying to es- 
cape, was captured by a detachment of 
General J. H. Wilson's cavalry at Ir- 
winsville, Georgia, and sent to For-tress 
Monroe. Here he was confined a close 
prisoner for a long time on the charge 
of treason. He was at last liberated on 
bail furnished by Horace Greeley and 
others, and all proceedings against him 
were finally abandoned. In fact, the 
glorious triumph of the government of 
the United States was in no wise sul- 



100 



END OF THE GREAT CIVIL WAR. 



lied by any dismal executions for trea- 
son. 

The assassination of Lincoln cliecked 
for a time the movement which had 
already begun for the restoration of the 
seceding States. People who had been 
ready in their joy to make peace with 
those who had been leaders in the Con- 
federacy now were ready to believe that 
the spirit which had brought on the 
war was unchanged. There was a de- 
mand that the laws against treason, 
passed by Congress during the heat of 
the war, in 1862, should be rigidly en- 
forced. These laws prescribed that the 
punishment of treason and rebellion 
should be death, or fine and imprison- 
ment. 

Amnesty for Traitors- 

But a wiser judgment prevailed. 
There was no hanging for treason. The 
leaders of the Confederacy were never 
jrought to trial. The president of the 
Confederate States was suffered to go 
free ; and the vice-president, before his 
death, became an efficient and respected 
member in the Congress of the United 
States. For a long time, however, all 
persons who had previously taken oath 
of allegiance to the Federal government, 
and then had broken it by joining the 
Confederacy, were debarred from hold- 
ing any office under the government of 
the United States, 

The expenses of the Federal govern- 
ment amounted at one time to three 
and a half million dollars a day. By 
August 31, 1865, the whole debt had 
reached its maximum, amounting to 
about $2,845,907,626. Some ^800,000,- 
000 of revenue had also been spent 



mainly on the war. Beside the regular 
outlay b" the government enormous 
sums were spent by States, cities, coun- 
ties and towns in bounties to volunteers, 
and by the sanitary commissions and 
other societies for the comfort of sick 
and wounded soldiers, and for the whole 
army in general. The expenses of the 
Confederate government can never be' 
known. Its debt was estimated at about 
;^ 2, 000, 000,000, but this was wiped out 
by the failure of the Confederacy, all 
its bonds and notes becoming worth- 
less. 

Vast Destruction of Property. 

The amount of property destroyed 
by the Union and Confederate armies 
can scarcely be estimated, and the 
money value (^2,000,000,000) of the 
slaves in the South fell a sacrifice to 
the war. In the United States funds 
were raised by the sale of bonds, the 
issue of paper money, of " greenbacks " 
and the imposition of heavy taxes, in- 
cluding, for some years, a tax on in- 
comes. The notes became greatly de- 
preciated, so that in July, 1864, the 
price of gold in paper currency was 
nearly three dollars. Gold and silver 
almost disappeared from circulation. 

The finances of the Confederacy were 
in a ruinous condition long before the 
end of the war. It could make no drafts 
on the future by bond issues, and it 
was a very difficult matter to find pur- 
chasers for southern bonds. As ex- 
penses increased they had to be met by 
paper issues, and each issue was accom- 
panied by a corresponding decline in 
value, until a dollar in coin was worth 
fifty dollars in paper. 



CHAPTER VII. 



From the Restoration of the Union to Our War with Spain. 



(5 I HE most important event follow- 
' I ing close upon the restoration of 
* peace was the opening of the 

Pacific railway from the Missouri river 
to the Pacific Ocean in 1869. The 
eastern division of this road is knov/n 
as the Union Pacific railway, and was 
begun at Omaha, Nebraska, in Decem- 
ber, 1863, and carried westward. But 
little progress was made in the work 
until 1865, when it was pushed rapidly 
forward. 

The western division, known as the 
Central Pacific railway, was begun at 
San Francisco, about the same time, 
and carried eastward across the Sierra 
Nevada. The two roads united at Og- 
den, near Salt Lake City, in Utah, and 
the union was accomplished on the 
tenth of May, 1869, on which day the 
last rail was laid. The Union Pacific 
railway, from Omaha to Ogden, is one 
thousand and thirty-two miles in length; 
the Central Pacific, from Ogden to San 
Francisco, eight hundred and eighty- 
two miles; making a total line of nine- 
teen hundred and fourteen miles. 

Immediately upon the opening of 
President Lincoln's second term of 
ofl&ce, Mr. Charles Francis Adams, the 
American minister at the court of St. 
James, was instructed to call the atten- 
tion of the British Government to the 
depredations committed upon American 
commerce by Confederate cruisers, built, 
equipped and manned in England, and 
to insist upon the responsibility of 
Great Britain for the losses thus in- 
curred by American ship-owners. Mr. 
Adams discharged this duty in a com- 



munication addressed to the British 
Government on April 7th, 1865. This 
led to a correspondence which continued 
through the summer of that year. Great 
Britain refused to admit the validity of 
the American claim, or to submit the 
question to the arbitration of any foreign 
government. The " Alabama question ' ' 
remained unsettled for several years, 
and occasioned a considerable amount 
of ill-feeling between the two countries. 
Both governments regarded it as full of 
danger, but to Great Britain it was 
especially so, as in the event of a wai 
between that country and any foreign 
power, the United States, following the 
example of England, might and doubt- 
less would allow cruisers to be sent -out 
from their ports which would seriously 
cripple, if they did not destroy, the 
British commerce. 

Court of Arbitration. 

After Mr. Adams' return from Eng- 
land, his successor, Reverdy Johnson, 
was directed by the President to reopen 
the matter. He negotiated a treaty 
with the Earl of Clarendon on behalJ 
of the British Government in 1869, bul 
this arrangement was unsatisfactory tc 
the Senate, which body refused to rat- 
ify it. 

Two years later the matter was re- 
vived, and in 1871 a joint high com- 
mission, composed of a number of dis- 
tinguished public men, appointed by 
the American and British Governments, 
met at Washington, and arranged a set- 
tlement known as the treaty of Wash- 
ington, which was ratified by both 



102 



FROM THE CIVIL WAR TO OUR WAR WITH SPAIN, 



Governments. This treaty was ratified 
by the Senate on the twenty-fourth of 
May, and provided for the settlement 
not only of the Alabama claims, but of 
ill other questions at issue between the 
LTnited States and Great Britain. 

The Alabama claims were referred by 
the treaty of Washington to a board of 
arbitration composed of five commis- 
sioners selected from the neutral na- 



On the night of Sunday, October 8, 
1 87 1, a fire broke out in the city of 
Chicago, and raged with tremendous 
violence for two days, laying the greater 
part of the city in ashes. It was 
the most destructive conflagration of 
modern times. The total area of the 
city burned over was two thousand 
one hundred and twenty-four acres, 
or very nearly three and one-third 




CHICAGO AFTER THE FIRE. 



dons. This board met at Geneva, in 
Switzerland, on the fifteenth day of 
April, 1872, and the American and 
English representatives presented to it 
their respective cases, which had been 
prepared by the most learned counsel 
in both countries. On the twenty- 
seventh of June the board announced 
its decision. The claims of the United 
States were admitted, and the damages 
awarded our Government were $16,- 
250,000. These were paid in due time- 



square miles. The number of build- 
ings destroyed was seventeen thousand 
four hundred and fifty. About two 
hundred and fifty persons died from 
various causes during the conflagration, 
and ninety-eight thousand persons were 
rendered homeless by it. The entire 
business quarter was destroyed. The 
actual loss will never be known. As 
far as it can be ascertained, it was about 
one hundred and ninety-six millions of 
dollars. 



FROM THE CIVIL WAR TO OUR WAR WITH SPAIN 



103 



On the 29th of May, 1872, Congress 
passed an act removing the disabilities 
imposed upon th*_ Southern people by 
the third section of the fourteenth 
amendmeni to the Constitution. From 
this general exemptioii were excepted 
all person, who had been member;^ of 
Congress, officers of the army or navy, 
heads 01 departments under the gen- 
eral government^ or ministers to for- 
eign countries, who nad resigned their 
positions and joined the secession move- 
ment. By this act at least one hun- 
dred and fifty thousand men of capacity 
and experience, whose services were 
greatly needed by the South, were re- 
stored to political life. 

Discontent in Cuba. 

For many years Cuba had been grow- 
ing dissatisfied with the rule of Spain. 
In 1868 a revolution broke out in that 
island, having for its object the expul- 
sion of the Spaniards and the establish- 
ment of the independence of Cuba. The 
patriot army was able to win numerous 
successes over the Spanish troops, and 
for several years maintained its position 
against every effort to dislodge it. 

Very great sympathy was manifested 
for the Cuban patriots by the people of 
the United States, and repeated efforts 
were made to induce the government of 
this country to recognize the independ- 
ence of Cuba and assist the patriots, or 
at least to acknowledge their rights as 
belligerents. The government, how- 
ever, faithfully observed its obligations 
as a neutral power, and forbade the or- 
ganization or departure of all expedi- 
tions from this country for the assistance 
of the Cubans. The Cuban agents were 
prevented from shipping arms or mili- 
tary supplies to their forces, and several 



vessels intended to serve as cruisers 
against the Spanish commerce were 
seized and detained by the Federal au- 
thorities. 

In spite of the precautions of the 
government, however, several expedi- 
tions uid .ucceed in getting to sea and 
reaching Cuba. One of these embarked 
on the steamer Virginius, in the fall of 
1 873. vVhen off the coast of Jamaica 
the Spanish war steamer Tornado was 
sighted. She at once gave chase, and 
though the Virginius was on the high 
seas and was flying the American flag, 
overhauled her and took possession of 
her on the thirty-first of October. The 
Tornado then carried her prize into the 
port of Santiago de Cuba, which was 
reached the next day. Captain Fry, 
the commander of the Virginius, and 
the crew and passengers of the vessel 
were thrown into prison. 

Wholesale Murder, 

After a mock trial, in which the 
simplest forms of decency were disre- 
garded, Captain Fry and a number of 
the crew and passengers of the Vir- 
ginius, about tliirty-five or forty in all, 
were shot by order of the military au- 
thorities. The other prisoners were 
held in a most cruel captivity to await 
the pleasure of the Spanish officials at 
Havana. The consul of the United 
States at Santiago de Cuba made great 
exertions to save Fry and those con- 
demned to die with him. He was treated 
with great indignity by the Spanish 
officials, and was not allowed to com- 
municate with Havana, from which 
point he could consult his government 
by telegraph. 

When the news of the seizure of the 
Virsfinius at sea under the Ameiican 



104 



FROM THE CIVIIv WAR TO OUR WAR WITH SPAIN. 



flag reached the United States it aroused 
a storm of indignation. Meetings were 
held in all the principal cities, and the 
press unanimously sustained the popular 
demand that the government should re- 
quire satisfaction for the outrage upon 
its flag. The general sentiment of the 
people was in favor of instant war, and 
it was openly declared that a better op- 
portunity would never arise to drive the 
Spaniards out of Cuba and obtain pos- 
session of the island. 

The government acted with firmness 
and prudence. Several vessels of war 
were stnt to Santiago de Cuba to prevent 
the execution of the surviving prison- 
ers taken with the Virginius ; the fleet 
in the West Indies was reinforced as 
rapidly as possible, and the navy was 
at once put on a war footing in order to 
be ready for any emergency. The Presi- 
dent was urged to convene Congress in 
extra session, but he declined to do so, 
knowing that that body would be most 
l.kely to yield to the popular demand for 
war, and he was anxious to settle the dif- 
ficulty by peaceful means if possible. 

Demands upon Spain. 

General Sickles, the American min- 
ister at Madrid, was ordered to demand 
of the Spanish government the arrest 
and punishment of the officials impli- 
cated in the massacre of Captain Fry 
and his associates, a suitable indemnity 
in money for the families of the mur- 
dered men, an apology to the United 
vStates for the outrage upon their flag, 
and the surrender of the Virginius to the 
naval authorities of the United States. 

These demands were at once submitted 
to Senor Castellar, the president of the 
Spanish republic. In the critical situa- 
tion in which Spain was then placed 



by her internal dissensions, Castellar had 
no choice but to submit to the American 
demands. Orders were at once trans- 
mitted to Cuba to surrender the Virgin- 
ius and all the prisoners to the Americar 
naval forces. 

The orders of the Spanish govern- 
ment were at first disregarded by the 
officials at Havana, who blustered a great 
deal, and declared their willingness to go 
to war with the United States. They 
were brought to their senses, however, 
by the warning of Captain General Jo- 
vellar, who told them that their refusal 
to obey the orders of the Madrid gov- 
ernment would certainly involve them 
in a war with the United States, in 
which Spain would leave them to fight 
that power without aid from her. The 
Havana officials, therefore, yielded an 
ungracious obedience to the orders of 
the home government. 

Fate of the Virginius. 

The survivors of the Virginius expe- 
dition, who were in a most pitiable con- 
dition, in consequence of the cruelty 
with which they had been treated during 
their imprisonment, were released and 
delivered on board an American man-of- 
war in the Hai-bor of Havana. 

On the twelfth of December the Vir- 
ginius, which had been taken to Havana 
by her captors some time before, was 
towed ironi that harbor and delivered to 
an American vessel sent to receive her. 
She was carried to Key West, from 
which port she was ordered to New 
York. On the voyage she foundered at 
sea in a gale off Cape Fear, on the 
twenty-sixth of December. At a later 
period the Spanish government paid the 
indemnity demanded by the United 
States. 



FROM THE CIVIL WAR TO OUR WAR WITH vSPAIN. 



105 



On the ninth of November, 1872, a fire 
occurred in Boston, and burned until 
late on the tenth, sweeping over a area 
of sixty-five acres in the centre of the 
wholesale trade of the city, and destroy- 
ing property to the amount of seventy- 
rieht million dollars. As this fire was 



at length became dissatisfied with their 
new location, which they declared was 
unable to afford them a support, and 
began a series of depredations upon the 
settlements of the whites, which soon 
drew upon them the vengeance of the 
Federal government. Troops were sent 




THE IvAVA BEDS — SCENE OF THE MODOC WAR. 



confined to the business quarter ol the 
city, comparatively few persons were 
deprived of their homes. 

Early in 1873, a troublesome war be- 
gan with the Modoc Indian tribe on the 
Pacific coast. These Indians had been 
removed by the government from their 
old homes in California to reservations 
in the northern pa?*" of Oregon. They 



against them, but they retreated to 
their fastnesses in the lava beds, where 
they maintained a successful resistance 
for several months. The government 
at length reinforced the troops operating 
against them, and General Canby, com- 
manding the department of the Pacific, 
assumed the immediate command of the 
troops in the field. 



106 



FROM THE CIVIL WAR TO OUR WAR WITH SPAIN. 



At the same time, a commission was 
appointed by the government to en- 
deavor to settle the quarrel with the 
Indians peaceably. This commission 
held several conferences with Captain 
Jack, the head chief of the Modocs, 
and the other Indian leaders, but accom- 
plished nothing. At length the com- 
missioners and General Canby agreed 
to meet the Indians in the lava beds, a 
short distance in advance of the lines of 
the troops. They went unarmed and 
without an escort. While the confer- 
ence was in progress, the Indians sud- 
denly rose upon the commissioners and 
killed all but one, who managed to 
escape with severe wounds. General 
Cranby was shot down at the same time 
and died instantly. 

Hanged Till They Were Dead. 

The Indians at once fled to their strong- 
holds amid the rocks. The troops, in- 
furiated by the murder of their com- 
mander, closed in upon them from all 
sides and shut them in the lava beds. 
Their position was one which a handful 
of men might defend against an army, 
and they held it with a desperate deter- 
mination. They were dislodged finally 
by the shells of the American guns, 
and such as were not killed were cap- 
tured. Captain Jack and his associates 
in the murder of General Canby and the 
commissioners were tried by a court- 
martial and sentenced to death. They 
were hanged in the presence of their 
countrymen and of the troops on the 
third of October, 1873. 

The year 1875 completed the period 
of one hundred years from the opening 
of the Revolution, and the events of 1775 
were celebrated with appropriate com- 
memorative ceremonies in the places 



where they occurred. The centennial 
anniversary of the battles of Lexington 
and Concord was celebrated at those 
places on the nineteenth of April with 
great rejoicings. On the seventeenth of 
June the centennial of Bunker Hill was 
celebrated at Charlestown. Vast crowds 
were present from all parts of the 
country. 

One of the most gratifying features 
of the celebration was the presence and 
hearty participation in the ceremonies 
of a large number of troops from the 
Southern States. Nearly all of these 
had served in the Confederate army, and 
their presence in the metropolis of New 
England was an emphatic proof that the 
Union had indeed been restored. The 
memory of the common glory won by 
the fathers of the republic did much to 
heal the wounds and obliterate the scars 
of the Civil War. 

Centennial Exhibition. 

As early as 1872 measures were set on 
foot for the proper observance of the one 
hundredth anniversary of the independ- 
dence of the United States. It was re- 
solved to commemorate the close of the 
first century of the republic by an Inter- 
national Exhibition, to be held at Phil- 
adelphia in 1876, in which all the na- 
tions of the world were invited to par- 
ticipate. Preparations were at once set 
on foot for the great celebration. 

The European governments with 
great cordiality responded to the invi- 
tations, extended to them by the gov- 
ernment of the United States, and on 
the loth of May, 1876, the International 
Centennial Exhibition was opened with 
the most imposing ceremonies in the 
presence of an immense concourse of 
citizens from all parts of the Union, and 



JfROM THE CIVIL WAR TO OUR WAR WITH SPAIN. 



107 



of the President of the United States 
and the Emperor of Brazil. The exhi- 
bition remained open from May lOth to 
November loth, 1876, and was visited 
by more than ten million people from the 
various States of the Union, from Can- 
ada, South America and Europe. It 
was one of the grandest and most nota- 
ble events of the century, and. illustra- 
ted our country's progress. 

The year 1876 was not destined to be 
entirely a period of peace. The Sioux 
Indians had ceded to the United States 



with about 250 soldiers, was surprised 
by an overwhelming force of Indians 
and he and his entire command were 
massacred. Custer's men fought with 
wonderful bravery and exacted a fear- 
ful price for their lives at the hands of 
the savages. The war lasted into the 
winter of 1877, when the Sioux with 
their chiefs, Sitting Bull and Crazy 
Horse, went across the border into 
British territory. 

Hon. James A. Garfield was inau- 
gurated President March 4, 1881. He 




CEREMONIES AT THE OPENING OF THE CENTENNIAL EXHIBITION. 



a large tract of country in what was 
then Dakota Territory, reserving to 
themselves the district known as the 
Black Hills. When it was rumored 
that gold had been found on their reser- 
vation, the whites began to rush into 
this region, regardless of the rights of 
the Indians. The Sioux were a warlike 
tribe, and they retaliates by attacking 
the frontier settlements in Montana and 
Wyoming. 

United States troops were sent against 
them, but met at first with a terrible 
disaster. In June, 1876, General Custer, 



had made plans for making a visit to 
New England, to be present at the com- 
mencement exercises of his Alma Mater, 
Williams College, in Massachusetts, 
and was to be accompanied by a distin- 
guished party, including several mem- 
bers of the Cabinet. On the morning 
of the 2d of July the party proceeded 
to the Baltimore and Potomac depot, 
where they were to take the cars, in 
advance of the President, who arrived 
soon after in company with Secretarj 
Blaine, who came simply to see him 
oflf and say good-bye. They left the 



108 



FROM THE CIVIL WAR TO OUR WAR WiTH SPAIN. 



President's carriage together, and saun- 
tered arm-in-arm through the depot 
towards the cars. 

In passing through the ladies' waiting- 
room, the President was fired at twice 
^y a man named Charles J. Guiteau. 
Hie first shot inflicted a slight wound 
in the President's right arm, and the 
second a terrible wound in the right 
side of his back, between the hip and 



hope and despair, and was kept all the 
while in a most painful suspense. 

He was then removed to L,ong Branch, 
New Jersey, in the hope that sea-air 
would benefit him, and for a time there 
were renewed hopes of his recovery, but 
on September 19th a change for the 
worst appeared, and the brave struggle 
was brought to an end. The funeral 
took place amidst universal demonstra- 




ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT GARFIELD. 



the kidney. The President fell heavily 
to the floor, and the assassin was secured 
as he was seeking to make his escape 
from the building, and was conveyed to 
a police-station, from which he was sub- 
sequently taken to prison. 

The two months following the wound- 
ing of President Garfield dragged wea- 
rily away, the patient at times showing 
symptoms of marked improvement, and 
at others experiencing dangerous re- 
lapses. The nation alternated between 



tions of sorrow throughout the country. 
On the 30th of June, 1882, the assassin 
was executed at Washington. 

Early in 1 891 active preparations were 
commenced for the appropriate celebra- 
tion of the four hundredth anniversary 
of the discovery of America by Colum- 
bus. As the centennial anniversary of 
American independence in 1876 had 
been commemorated by an international 
exposition at Philadelphia, in which 
nearly all the civilized nations of the 



/ 
















^: 



l-*" 



.1 ^ I 






«*w 



■^^-fV 




109 



110 



FROM THE CIVIIv WAR TO OUR WAR WITH SPAIN. 



earth participated, it was resolved to 
celebrate the discovery of the New 
World by an exhibition of grander pro- 
portions, as the only suitable method of 
giving dignity to the great occasion. 
The whole country became interested in 
the project, and it was advocated with 
unanimity by the newspaper press. 

The act of Congress, which definitely 
selected Chicago as the city in which 
the Exposition should be held, and 
which fixed the dates of the celebration 
to be held in 1892, and the formal open- 
ing and closing of the Exposition in 
1893, was approved by the President of 
the United States, April 25, 1890. The 
Exposition buildings were located in 
Jackson Park. 

Dedication Oeremonies. 

The grounds and buildings were so 
nearly ready that the dedication cere- 
monies were held in October, 1 892. The 
celebration in New York extended over 
several days, ending on the 12th of Oc- 
tober, and consisted of a magnificent 
military and naval parade. Vast num- 
bers of people flocked to the metropolis 
from surrounding towns, and even dis- 
tant localities, and participated in the 
festivities. 

The greatest celebration, however, 
was in Chicago, occupying several days, 
and attended by multitudes of people. 
Vice-President Morton was present, also 
the governors of a number of States, 
together with distinguished persons 
from all parts of the country, including 
President Harrison's Cabinet, army and 
navy officers, and members of Congress. 

On Monday, the ist day of May, 1893, 
in the presence of 300,000 people, Gro- 
ver Cleveland", President of the United 
States, surrounded by the members of, 



his Cabinet, by a distinguished repre- 
sentation from lands across the seas, 
and a mighty throng of American citi- 
zens, pressed the electric button which 
set in motion the miles of shafting, the 
innumerable engines and machines, and 
the labyrinth of belting and gearing 
which made up the machinery of the 
World's Columbian Exposition. 

At the sam^ moment a National 
salute peeled forth from the gun, the 
"Andrew Johnson, ' ' lying off" the Expo- 
sition grounds, in Lake Michigan ; 700 
flags released from their "tops" at a 
concerted signal swung loose, and 
streamed out under the sky in scarlet, 
yellow and blue. 

In Machinery Hall a great roar arose, 
and the turrets of the building shook 
as the wheels began to turn, and a 
greater volume of sound arose from the 
throats of a concourse of people who 
thus acclaimed the opening of the grand- 
est achievement of America pluck, 
enterprise and generosity. 

President Starts Machinery. 

From the centre of the platform pro- 
per there radiated a special stand, and 
upon this were chairs for President 
Cleveland, Vice-President Stevenson, 
the Duke of Veragua and his party, and 
the higher national and local officers 
of the Fair. Immediately in the rear 
were the sections assigned to the mem- 
bers of the Diplomatic Corps, while to 
their right and left the guests of the 
occasion were arranged ; behind these 
were placed the orchestra. 

Prayer was offered by Rev. W. H, 
Milburn, D.D., Chaplain of the United 
States Senate, after which a poem, writ- 
ten by Mr. W. A. Croffutt, was read. 
Then followed addresses by the Hon. 



FROM THE CIVIL WAR TO OUR WAR WITH SPAIN. 



Ill 



George R. Davis, Director-General of 
the Exposition, and President Cleve- 
land. 

As the President was concluding the 
final sentence of his address his eyes 
wandered to the table that was close at 
his left hand. Upon this was the button, 
the pressure upon which was to start 
the machinery and make the opening 
of the Exposition an accomplished fact. 
It rested upon a pedestal upholstered in 
navy blue and golden yellow plush, and 
on the sides of the lower tier, in silver 
letters, were the significant dates, 1492 
and 1893. As the last words fell from 
the President's lips he pressed his finger 
upon the button. 

Hallelujah Chorus. 

tShis was the signal for a demonstra- 
nefa difficult of imagination, and in- 
finitely more so of description. At one 
and the same instant the audience burst 
into a thundering shout, the orchestra 
pealeth forth the strains of the Hallelu- 
jah Chorus, the wheels of the great Ellis 
engine in Machinery Hall commenced to 
revolve, the electric fountains in the la- 
goon threw their torrents towards the 
sky, a flood of water gushed from the 
McMonnies Fountain and rolled back 
again into the basin, the thunder of 
artillery came from the vessels in the 
lake, the chimes in Manufacturers' Hall 
and on the German Building rang out a 
merry peal, and overhead the flags at 
the tops of the poles in front of the 
platform fell apart and revealed two 
gilded models of the ships in which 
Columbus first sailed to American 
shores. 

At the same moment also hundreds 
of flags of all nations and all colors 
were unfurled within sight of the plat- 



form. The largest was a great " Old 
Glory," which fell into graceful folds 
from the top of the centre staff" in front 
of the stand. The roof of the Manu- 
facturers' Building was gorgeous in red 
gonfalons, while the Agricultural Build- 
ing was dressed in ensigns of orange 
and white. 

It was a wonderful scene of transfor- 
mation, and amid it all cannon con- 
tinued to thunder and the crowd to 
cheer. It was fully ten minutes before 
the demonstration subsided. Then the 
band played " Americci" and the exer- 
cises were at an end. The Columbian 
Exposition was open to the nations of 
the world. It was precisely the hour 
of noon when President Cleveland 
touched the button and thus declared 
the opening an accomplished fact. 

Statistics of the Fair. 

The official time for closing the Fair 
was October 30th. The following are 
the official figures for the paid admis- 
sions to the Fair : May, 1,050,037; June 
2,675,113; July, 2,760,263; August, 
3,515,493; September, 4,659,871; Oc- 
tober, 6,816,435 f making 21,477,212. 
The total admissions on passes were 
2,052,188, making a grand total of 
23,529,400. 

After every debt of the World's Fair 
was paid there remained $1,000,000 to 
be distributed among the stockholders. 
The treasurer made this pleasant an- 
nouncement on the closing day. The 
Exposition Company paid out ;^30,558,- 
849.01, or three times the amount the 
managers expected to spend when they 
commenced building the Fair. The 
gate receipts during the Exposition 
period proper were a little over ^^lo,- 

ClOOyOOO. 



112 



FROM THE CIVIL WAR TO OUR WAR WITH SPyMN. 



Up to the last day $3,300,000 had 
been, collected from concessionaries. 
The returns from those who held con- 
cession privileges was one of the big 
surprises of the Fair. Nobody was 
reckless enough to predict that that 
sum would be realized. The Paris Ex- 
position received but $80,000 from that 
source, while in 1876 the Centennial 
Exposition managers received $1,200,- 

000. 

Grold in Alaska. 

Much excitement was caused in 1897 
by the discovery of gold in Alaska. It 
was found in large quantities in the 
Yukon district. On the Klondike it 
was found in August of the year pre- 
ceding. The Canadian Government is 
sued new mining regulations, as it was 
anticipated that many persons in pur- 
suit of the yellow metal would rush to 
this region. Both from the United 
States and Canada thousands of men 
started for the Klondike. 

Many of them were ignorant of the 
country they were seeking, its severe 
climate in winter, the absence of the 
necessaries of life, and the consequence 
was that a vast amount of suffering re- 
sulted at Dawson City and other places. 



In December, 1897, a steamer left the 
gold region and arrived at Victoria, B. 
C, August 29th, 1898, with thirty-five 
miners and two hundred thousand dol- 
lars in gold. Nearly one million dol- 
lars in value arrived there on the 15th 
of July, 1899. 

Qeneral Prosperity. 

The extreme business depressio^.that 
had lasted for several years gave way in 
1898 and 1899 to great activity in all 
kinds of trade. Manufacturing interests 
revived, and some of the industries, 
especially iron and steel, received or- 
ders larger than ever before, and had 
great difficulty in meeting the demands 
made upon them. At the same time 
our exports were largely increased and 
the balance of trade with other coun- 
tries was in our favor. 

The Spanish-American War did not 
seriously affect the prosperity of the 
country, which was greater than that 
of any previous period of our history. 
This had a quieting effect upon the 
laboring classes, and there were few 
sharp conflicts between capital and 
labor, as in nearly all the industries 
wages were advanced. 



CHAPTER VIII 




The Spanish-American War. 



NDER the lead- 
ership of a band 
of brave pa- 
triots an insur- 
rection broke 
out in Cuba 
early in 1895. 
It was simply a 
continuation of 
the straggle for independence which 
had been going on at intervals for many 
years. Cuban revolutionists were bat- 
tling to throw off the yoke of Spain. 

When our Congress was in session in j plosion was not apparent 
the winter of 1897-98 Cuba's struggle 



which were referred to the committee 
on foreign relations, were indicative of 
the temper of Congress. 

A profound sensation was creaced by 
the destruction of the United States 
battleship Maine in the harbor of Ha- 
vana. The Maine was lying in harbor, 
having been sent to Cuba on a friendly 
visit. On the evening of February 15, 
1898, a terrific explosion took place on 
board the ship, by which 266 sailors 
and officers lost their lives and the ves- 
sel was wrecked. The cause of the ex- 



for freedom occupied its attention more 
than any other topic. The Spanish 
General Weyler ordered all the inhabi- 
tants of Cuba who were suspected of 
sympathizing with the insurgents into 
the towns, where they were left to ob- 
tain the necessaries of life as best they 
could. This act, which was pronounced 
inhuman by the American people, re- 
sulted in the death of tens of thousands 
of men, women and children by starva- 
tion. Meanwhile, accurate reports of 
the appalling situation in Cuba were 
brought by several members of Con- 
gress who visited the island with a view 
to ascertaining the exact facts. 

These reports so inflamed the Sen- 
■ ate ana House of Representatives that 
a number of resolutions were intro- 
duced demanding that belligerent rights 
should be granted to the Cubans, and 
further, that the United States should 
intervene with force of arms to end the 
war in Cuba, and secure the indepen- 
dence of the island. These resolutions, 



Destruction of the Maine. 

The Government at Washington and 
the whole country were horrified at the 
destruction of one of our largest cruiseis 
and the loss of so many of our brave 
sailors. The excitement throughout 
the country was intense. The chief 
interest in the Maine disaster now cen- 
tered upon the cause of the explosion 
that so quickly sent her to the bottom 
of Havana harbor. 

A Naval Board of Inquiry went to 
Havana, and proceeded promptly to in- 
vestigate the cause of the explosion 
that destroyed the battleship. The 
finding of the Court of Inquiry was 
reached after twenty-three days of con- 
tinuous labor, and was submitted to 
Congress by President McKinley with 
a message in which he said : 

"The conclusions of the Court are: 
That the loss of the Maine was not in 
any respect due to fault or negligence 
on the part of qny of the officers or 
memb'^^s of her crew. 

113 



114 



THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 



" That the ship was destroyed by the 
explosion of a submarine mine, which 
caused the partial explosion of two or 
more of her forward magazines ; and 

"That no evidence has been obtain- 
able fixing the responsibility for the de- 
struction of the Maine upon any person 
or persons. 

*' I have directed that the finding of 
the Court of Inquiry and the views of 
this Government thereon be communi- 
cated to the Government of her Majesty, 
the Queen Regent, and I do not permit 
myself to doubt that the sense of jus- 
tice of the Spanish nation will dictate 
a course of action suggested by honor 
and the friendly relations of the two 
governments. 

" It will be the duty of the Executive 
to advise the Congress of the result, and 
in the meantime deliberate considera- 
tion is invoked." 

Message from the President. 

Following the destruction of the bat- 
tleship Maine, which profoundly stirred 
the whole country with indignation. 
President McKinley sent a message to 
Congress containing the following re- 
quest : "I ask the Congress to author- 
ize and empower the President to take 
measures to secure a full and final ter- 
mination of hostilities between the Gov- 
ernment of Spain and the people of 
Cuba, and to secure in the island the 
establishment of a stable government 
capable of maintaining order and ob- 
serving its international obligations, 
ensuring peace and tranquillity and the 
security of its citizens as well as our 
own, and to use the military and naval 
forces of the United States as may be 
necessary for these purposes." 

Congress debated a week over the 



recommendations contained in the Pre- 
sident's message, and on April i8th 
both Houses united in passing a series 
of resolutions calling for the interven- 
tion of the United States to compel 
Spain to withdraw her forces from Cuba, 
and thus permit the authorities at Wash- 
ington to provide the Island with a free 
and independent government. The de- 
mand contained in the resolutions was 
sent to the Spanish Minister at Wash- 
ington on April 20th, who at once called 
for his passports and left for Canada. 

On the same date the ultimatum of 
our Government was sent to United 
States Minister Woodford, at Madrid, 
who was curtly handed his passports 
before he had an opportunity of formally 
presenting the document. These trans- 
actions involved a virtual declaration of 
war, although Congress did not for- 
mally declare that war actually existed 
until April 25th, dating the time back 
to the 2 1 St. 

The War Begins. 

The North Atlantic Squadron was 
immediately ordered to blockade the 
Cuban ports, and on April 2 2d pro- 
ceeded to carry out the order. The 
next day President McKinley promul- 
gated a resolution calling for 125,000 
volunteers. On the same date Morro 
Castle, commanding the harbor of Ha- 
vana, fired on the United States flag- 
ship New York, but without doing 
damage. Subsequent events comprised 
the capture of a number of Spanish 
vessels by Admiral Sampson's squadron. 

Stirring news from our Asiatic fleet 
was soon received. On May ist Admiral 
Dewey destroyed the Spanish squadron 
in the harbor of Manila, Philippine Is- 
landSj capturii;^ the vessels and inflict- 



THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 



115 



ing- a heavy loss on the enemy in killed 
and wounded. 

The American vessels were the Olym- 
pia, 5,800 tons, a swift commerce de- 
stroyer, carrying four terrible eight-inch 
guns and ten deadly five-inch quick- 
firers ; the Baltimore scarcely less form- 
idable than the Olympia, with four 
eight-inch 



fleet, steaming slowly up from Cavite, 
came several shots at the American fleet. 
The two duelists were now face to face. 
The Spanish ships were of older pat- 
terns, rather than smaller, and were far 
more numerous. There were the Reina 
Cristina, of 3,090 tons, with six six-inch 
and two three- inch guns ; the Castilla, 



guns and six 
six-inch rapid- 
firers; the Bos- 
ton, smaller 
than the Olym- 
pia and Balti- 
more, but still 
a real and pow- 
erful floating 
fort, with her 
two eight-inch 
guns and her 
six six-inch 
rapid-firers; 
the Raleigh, 
similar to the 
Boston, with 
one six-inch 
and ten five- 
inch guns ; the 
Concord, with 
six six-inch 
guns ; the gun- 
boat Petrel, 
with five six- 
inch guns. To 
the rear of 

these the transport ships, with coal, 
ammunition and accommodations for 
wounded. 

On came the American fleet until it 
was within about three miles of Manila, 
and then a Spanish gun on the battery 
at the end of the Mole spoke ; but the 
shot fell short. Then from the Spanish 




MANILA HARBOR -SCENE OF THE GREAT BATTLE 

with four six-inch guns ; the smaller 
cruisers Velasco, Don Juan de Austria 
and Don Antonio de Ulloa, besides ten 
gunboats. Then there were the batteries 
on shore all along the low peninsula. 

To get the full effect of all of these 
guns the Spaniards formed so that the 
Americans would have to face not only 



116 



niE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 



all the guns afloat, but also all the guns 
on shore at Cavite, while from the rear 
the strong batteries of Manila could, per- 
haps, send aiding shots. When the 
American manoeuverings brought their 
ships within range, at about 6.45, the 
real duel began. The Spanish fleet stood 
ready, flanked by the Cavite batteries 
on the south. 

The American fleet began to steam 
languidly to and fro. Suddenly there 
were one or two sharp cracks, and then 
a succession of deafening roars, and then 
one long, reverberating roar, that 
boomed and bellowed from shore to 
shore. A huge cloud of smoke lay close 
upon the waters, and around it was a 
penumbra of thick haze. 

Floating Batteries. 

Through this the American ships 
could be seen moving, now slowly, now 
more rapidly, flames shooting from their 
sides, and answering flames leaping from 
the Spanish ships and land batteries, 
while now and then from the direction 
of Manila came hollow rumbles as the 
big guns there were discharged, more 
from eagerness to take part than from 
the hope of lending effective aid. 

It was impossible to see from shore 
the effect of many of the shots, but from 
the fact that the American ships were 
alternately advancing and retreating in 
the course of their manoeuverings, the 
Spaniards on shore got the impression 
that the Yankees were being beaten. 
When the ships were again seen, the 
Reina Cristina was wrapped in flames. 
On her decks sailors, Spaniards and 
natives, were rushing frantically about. 
The Isla de Cuba came near, and part 
of the Reina Cristina's crew — perhaps 
all that were still alive — ^nd the Spanish 



Admiral went aboard her, but hardly 
were they aboard when she, too, burst 
into flanves. 

Confusion now reigned throughout 
the Spanish fleet. On every vessel the 
decks were slippery with blood and the 
air filled with the shrieks and groans of 
the Spaniards. The native sailors rushed 
about in a frenzy of rage rather than 
terror. The Americans were seemingly 
calm and cool, and still in good order 
they pressed their advantage. In fact, 
they pushed on too closely, for now the 
fire from the Cavite batteries became 
effective. 

Blown Skyward. 

At this juncture the Don Juan de 
Austria became a centre of interest. 
She had been in the very front of battle 
and received, perhaps, more of the Amer- 
ican shots than any other ship. Ad- 
miral Montojo, on the burning Isla de 
Cuba, threw up his arms with a gesture 
of despair as a heavy roar came from 
the Don Juan de Austria and part of 
her deck flew up in the air, taking with 
it scores of dead, dying and mangled. 
A shot had penetrated one of her maga- 
zines. She was ruined and sinking, but 
her crew refused to leave her. Weeping, 
cursing, praying and firing madly and 
blindly they went down with her, and 
as the Don Juan de Austria went down 
the Castilla burst into flames. 

The remainder of the Spanish fleet 
now turned and fled down the long, 
narrow inlet behind Cavite. Several ot 
the gun-boats were run ashore, others 
fled up a small creek and were groiinded 
there. The guns of Cavite kept on 
thundering, and the Americans, press- 
ing their advantage no further, drew off. 
As they steamed away toward their 



THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 



117 



waiting transports the Spaniards went 
wild with joy. 

They thought that in spite of out- 
ward appearances the American fleet was 
crippled, and that as it would be una- 
ble tc escape from the harbor it would 
fall into their hands. This was tele- 
graphed up to Manila, and soon to 
Madrid, where it filled the Ministry 
with momentary delight; but before 
the Ministers at Madrid had read the 
false news, the American fleet, with 
decks again cleared and with fresh sup- 
plies of ammunition was steaming back 
toward Cavite. 

Dewey Made Adrairal. 

This second engagement was short. 
The last Spanish ship was soon grounded 
or sunk. The American guns were now 
trained on Cavite, and one ship after 
another steamed along pouring in a 
deadly fire. At 11.30 the batteries at 
Cavite ceased to answer, and the Ameri- 
can fleet with ringing cheers from its ex- 
hausted, but triumphant crews steamed 
jubilantly back to the transport ships. 
And to the long list of splendid naval 
victories beginning with the Revolu- 
tion was added the glorious victory of 
Manila. 

In honor of his distinguished service 
Commodore Dewey was raised to the 
rank of Admiral, and Congress passed 
a series of resolutions thanking him 
and his men for services rendered their 
country, and voted a medal to every 
man of the fleet. Dewey's victory was 
gained without the loss of a single life. 

On May nth Ensign Bagley, of the 
torpedo boat Winslow, and five men 
were killed, and five others were wounded 
in Cardenas harbor, on the northern 
coast of Cuba, in an engagement with 



Spanish gunboats. The Americans dis- 
played great bravery in the face of dan- 
ger, the action of the United States 
gunboat Hudson being especially nota- 
ble in going to the rescue of the Win- 
slow, and towing her out of range of 
the enemy's fire. Ensign Bagley was 
the first to lose his life in the war. 

It was known that Spain had sent a 
formidable fleet under Admiral Cervera 
to operate in the waters around Cuba, 
but for several weeks the officers of our 
North Atlantic Squadron were unable 
to locate the Spanish ships, or tell their 
exact destination. On May 19th the 
long suspense occasioned by the diffi- 
culty of ascertaining what Admiral 
Cervera intended to do with his fleet 
was over, and it was definitely known 
that his vessels were entraped in the 
harbor of Santiago. 

Hurrying Troops Forward. 

The Government resolved to send 
troops at once to that point to aid the 
fleet in capturing the town. While it 
was known that the Spanish vessels 
were inside the harbor of Santiago it 
was considered impossible for our bat- 
tleships to enter the harbor on account 
of mines which had been planted, and 
the formidable attack sure to be made 
by batteries on shore. 

The entrance to the harbor of San- 
tiago is very na,rrow, and vessels are 
compelled at one point to go through a 
channel not much over three hundred 
feet wide. Here occurred on the morn- 
ing of June 3d one of the most gallant 
acts recorded in the annals of naval 
warfare. Lieutenant Hobson, naval 
constructor, on the flagship of Admiral 
Sampson, conceived the plan of block- 
ing this narrow entrance by sinking the 



118 



THE^ SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 



collier Merrimac, thus "bottling up" 
Cervera and his fleet. 

When it became known that he was 
about to enter upon this daring under- 
taking and would need a few brave 
spirits to aid him, every man apparently 
of the whole fleet was anxious to form 
one of the party. Only six, however, 
were chosen and these were men as 
brave and adventurous as Hobson him- 
self 

The collier was prepared for sinking, 
and early in the morning about daylight 
she started on her mission, accompanied 
by a launch manned by Ensign Powell 
and six other men, who were to rescue 
the crew of the Merrimac when she 
went down. Thousands of eyes from 
our ships were strained to watch the 
progress of the undertaking. Suddenly 
the Spanish batteries on shore opened 
fire on the daring craft. 

Fate of the Gallant Crew 

Lying closer in than the warships, 
Powell had seen the firing when the 
Merrimac and her crew, then well in- 
side Morro Castle, were probably first 
discovered by the Spaniards. He also 
heard an explosion, which may have 
been caused by Hobson' s torpedoes. 
The Ensign was not sure. He waited 
vainly, hoping to rescue the heroes of 
the Merrimac, until he was shelled out 
by the forts. 

The work, however, was done. The 
big vessel had been swung across the 
narrow entrance to the harbor, the tor- 
pedoes had been fired, the explosion had 
come, the great collier was sinking at 
j'-'st the right point ; and her gallant 
crew, having jumped into the water to 
save their lives, were taken on board 
the flagship of the ,Spanish Admiral, 



who praised their bravery, and sent an 
officer under flag of truce to assure Ad- 
miral Sampson that the heroic band 
was safe and would be well cared for. 
Spanish chivalry was forced to admira- 
tion. 

By the end of June the army that oui 
Government had ordered to Cuba had 
arrived, General Shafter being in com- 
mand. The number of troops was about 
16,000, including officers, and sailed 
from Tampa, Florida, June 13th, arriv- 
ing at Santiago on the 20th. 

Rough Riders in Battle. 

It was not long after General Shafter's 
army landed before the United States 
troops were engaged in active service 
and had a sharp conflict with the enemy. 
The initial fight of Colonel Wood's 
famous regiment, known as the Rough 
Riders, and the troopers of the First 
and Tenth regular cavalry was at La 
Quasi na. That it did not end in the 
complete slaughter of the Americans 
was not due to any miscalculation in 
the plan of the Spaniards, for all the 
advantages of position were in their 
favor. For an hour and a half our troops 
held their ground under a perfect storm 
of bullets from the front and sides, and 
then Colonel Wood, at the right, and 
Lieutenant-Colonel Roosevelt at the left, 
led a charge which turned the tide of 
battle and sent the enemy flying over 
the hills toward Santiago. 

The American officers showed the ut- 
most energy in preparing for the attack 
on Santiago; by July ist everything was 
in readiness, and General Shafter or- 
dered a forward movement with a view 
of investing and capturing the town. 
The advance was made in two divisions, 
the left storming the works at San Juan. 



tHB SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 



llO 



Our torces m this assault were composed 
of the Rough Riders and the First, 
Third, Sixth, Ninth and Tenth dis- 
mounted cavalry. Catching the enthu- 
siasm and boldness of the Rough Riders, 
these men rushed against the San Juan 
defences with a fury that was irresistible. 
Their fierce assault was met by the 
Spaniards with a stubbornness born of 
desperation. Hour after hour the troops 
on both sides fought fiercely. In the 
early morning the Rough Riders met 
with a similar, though less costly, expe- 
rience to the one they had at La Quasina 
just a week before. They found them- 
selves a target for a terrific Spanish fire, 
to resist which for a time was the work 
of madmen. But the Rough Riders 
did not flinch. Fighting like demons, 
they held their ground tenaciously, now 
pressing forward a few feet, then falling 
back, under the enemy's fire, to the po- 
sition they held a few moments before. 

Cowboys and "Dandies." 

The Spaniards were no match for the 
Roosevelt fighters, however, and, as had 
been the case at La Quasina, the West- 
ern cowboys and Eastern "dandies" 
hammered the enemy from their path. 
Straight ahead they advanced, until by 
noon they were well along toward San 
Juan, the capture of which was their 
immediate object. 

There was terrible fighting about the 
heights during the next two horrs. 
While the Rough Riders were playing 
such havoc in the enemy's lines, the 
First, Third, Sixth, Ninth and Tenth 
cavalry gallantly pressed forward to 
right and left. Before the afternoon 
was far gone these organizations made 
one grand rush all along the line, cap- 
turing the San Juan fortifications, and 



sending the enemy in mad haste off" 
toward Santiago. It was but three 
o'clock when these troops were able to 
send word to General Shafter that they 
had taken possession of the position he 
had given them a day to capture. 

Carried by Storm. 

On the right General Lawton's divi- 
sion, supported by Van Home's brigade, 
under command temporarily of Colonel 
Ludlow, of the Engineers, drove the 
enemy from in front of Caney, forcing 
them back into the village. There the 
Spaniards for a time were able to hold 
their own, but early in the afternoon 
the American troops stormed the vil- 
lage defences, driving the enemy out 
and taking possession of the place. 
Gaining the direct road into Santiago, 
they established their lines within three- 
quarters of a mile of the city at sunset. 

General Shafter' s advance against the 
city of Santiago was resumed soon after 
daybreak on the morning of July 2d. 
The American troops renewed the at- 
tack on the Spanish defences with im- 
petuous enthusiasm. They were not 
daunted by the heavy losses sustained 
in the first day's fighting. Inspired by 
the great advantages they had gained 
on the preceding day, the American 
troops were eager to make the final 
assault on the city itself Their ad- 
vance had been an uninterrupted series 
of successes, they having forced the 
Spaniards to retreat from each new posi- 
tion as fast as it had been taken. Ad- 
miral Sampson, with his entire fleet, 
joined in the attack. 

The battles before the intrenchments 
around Santiago resulted in advantage 
to General Shafter' s army. Gradually 
he approached the citv, holding <?verv 



120 



THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 



foot of ground gained. In the fighting 
of July 2d, the Spanish were forced 
back into the town, their commanding 
general was wounded, and the day 
closed with the certainty that soon our 
flag would float over Santiago. 

The fleet of Admiral Cervera had long 
been shut up in the harbor, and during 
the two days' fighting gave effective aid 




INTERNATIONAL SIGNAL CODE. 

to the Spanish infantry by throwing 
shells into the ranks of the Americans. 
On the morning of July 3d, another 
great naval victory was added to the 
successes of the American arms, a vic- 
tory no less complete and memorable 
than that achieved by Dewey at Manila. 
Admiral Cervera's fleet, consisting of 
the armored cruisers Cristobal Colon, 
Almirante Oquendo, Infanta Maria Te- 



resa, and Vizcaya, and two torpedo boat 
destroyers, the Furor and the Pluton, 
which had been held in the harbor of 
Santiago de Cuba for six weeks by the 
combined squadrons of Rear-Admirals 
Sampson and Schley, was sent to the 
bottom of the Caribbean Sea off the 
southern coast of Cuba. 

Tlie Spanish admiral was made a 
prisoner of war on the auxiliary gun- 
boat Gloucester, and 1,000 to 1,500 
other Spanish officers and sailors, all 
who escaped the frightful carnage 
caused by the shells from the American 
warships, were also made prisoners oC 
war by the United States navy. The 
American victory was complete, and 
the American vessels were practically 
untouched, and only one man was 
killed, though the ships were subjected 
to the heavy fire of the Spaniards all 
the time the battle lasted. 

The Adnairal's Bravery. 

Admiral Cervera made as gallant a 
dash for liberty and for the preservation 
of the ships as has ever occurred in the 
history of naval warfare. In the face 
of overwhelming odds, with nothing 
before him but inevitable destruction 
or surrender if he remained any longer 
in the trap in which the American fleet 
held him, he made a bold dash from 
the harbor at the time the Americans 
least expected him to do so, and, fight- 
ing every inch of his way, even when 
his ship was ablaze and sinking, he 
tried to escape the doom which was 
written on the muzzle of every Ameri- 
can gun trained upon his vessels. 

One after another of the Spanish 
ships became the victims of the awful 
rain of shells which the American bat- 
tleships, cruisers and gun-boats poured 



THE SPANISH- AMERICAN WAR. 



121 



upon thera, and two hours after the first 
of the fleet had started out of Santiago 
harbor three cruisers and two torpedo- 
boat destroyers were lying on the shore 
ten to fifteen miles west of Morro Cas- 
tle, pounding to pieces, smoke and 
flame pouring from every part of them 
and covering the entire coast line with 
a mist which could be seen for miles. 

Heavy explosions of ammunition oc- 
curred every few minutes, sending curls 
of dense white smoke a hundred feet in 
the air, and causing a shower of broken 
iron and steel to fall in the water on 
every side. The bluffs on the coast 
line echoed with the roar of every ex- 
plosion, and the Spanish vessels sank 
deeper and deeper into the sand, or else 
the rocks ground their hulls to pieces 
as they rolled or pitched forward or 
sideways with every wave that washed 
upon them from the open sea. 

Total Destruction. 

Admiral Cervera escaped to the shore 
in a boat sent by the Gloucester to the 
assistance of the Infanta Maria Teresa, 
and as soon as he touched the beach he 
surrendered himself and his command 
to Lieutenant Morton, and asked to be 
taken on board the Gloucester, which 
was the only American vessel near him 
at the time, with several of his officers, 
including the captain of the flagship. 
The Spanish admiral, who was wounded 
in the arm, was taken to the Gloucester, 
and was received at her gangway by her 
commander, Lieutenant Richard Wain- 
wright, who grasped the hand of the 
gray-bearded admiral and said to him: 

"T congratulate you, sir, upon hav- 
ing made as gallant a fight as was ever 
witnessed on the sea." 

The only casualties in the American 



fleet were one man killed and two 
wounded on the Brooklyn. A large 
number of the Spanish wounded were 
removed to the American ships. 

General Toral, commander of the 
Spanish forces at Santiago, was sum- 
moned to surrender, and after much 
parleying yielded to General Shafter's 
demands on July 14th. The formal 
surrender took place on the 17th, and 
the American flag was hoisted over the 
city. By this victory 25,000 Spanish 
troops and officers in the province of 
Santiago became prisoners of war, and 
through the generosity of our govern- 
ment were afterwards sent back to 
Spain. 

It was understood that our Govern- 
ment would begin military operations 
for the purpose of capturing the. island 
of Porto Rico immediately after the fall 
of Santiago, and on July 21st an expe- 
dition under General Miles, Comman- 
der-in-chief of the American army, ac- 
companied by transports and a naval 
convoy, sailed from Siboney on the 
southern coast of Cuba. 

Our Army in Porto Rico. 

General Miles landed his forces on 
July 25th at Guanica, Porto Rico. He 
encountered but little opposition, al- 
though there were several sharp skir- 
mishes with the Spanish troops who 
were occupying various points as garri- 
sons. On July 27th Ponce surrendered 
to General Miles, and on the 28th the 
capitulation was formally effected. 

Our troops advanced northward across 
the island and soon occupied the im- 
portant town of San Juan. Thus the 
island was peacefully subdued, and with 
but little bloodshed. A military gov- 
ernment was after\yards established, 



122 



THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 



wliirh was intenaed to pave the way for 
a civil government that should promote 
the peace and welfare of the inhabitants. 

The Department of State at Washing- 
ton, on the afternoon of August 2d, is- 
sued a statement announcing officially 
Ihe President's terms of peace, which 
were handed to the French Ambassador 
Cambon, acting representative of the 
Spanish government at Washington. 
They were that Spanish sovereignty 
must be forever relinquished in the 
Western Indies ; that the United States 
should have a coaling station in the 
Ladrones, and that this country would 
occupy Manila's bay and harbor, as well 
as the city, pending the determination 
of the control, disposition and govern- 
ment of the Philippines. 

The announcement on August 7th, 
from Madrid, that the Spanish Ministry 
had formally decided to accept the pro- 
position of the United States for a peace 
convention relieved the anxiety that was 
felt for a definite decision. 

Attack on Manila. 

Messages were immediately sent to all 
army and navy commanders announcing 
that the war was ended and ordering 
them to cease hostilities. Before the 
message reached Manila Admiral Dewey 
and General Merritt resolved to capture 
the city. The warships bombarded the 
forts on August 13th, and the land forces 
at the same time made an attack. After 
a spirited resistance by the Spaniards 
they surrendered, knowing it was use- 
less to longer resist. 

The fortifications and shore defences 
and part of the city itself were destroyed 
by American shot and shell during a 
terrific bombardment of two hours by 
the eight ships of Admiral Dewey's 



fleet. The Americans killed lost their 
lives in storming the Spanish trenches, 
whei they swept everything before them 
like a whirlwind. 

At 9.30 o'clock the signal to open fire 
fluttered from th.^ signal lines of the 
Olympia. The flags were scarcely set 
when there was a roar from the big 
guns of the flagship herself Instantly 
all the other vessels opened and a shower 
of steel missiles sped toward the doomed 
city. At the same time along the line 
of the American intrenchments the field 
guns opened on the Spanish position, 
and the American infantry were massed 
in the intrenchments ready for the final 
assault. 

Enemy Swept Like Ohaflf. 

With a cheer the Americans sprang 
from their trenches and dashed for the 
Spanish earthworks. The First Colo- 
rado Volunteers were in the van. A 
deadly fire was poured in from the 
heights occupied by the Spaniards, and 
it was this that caused the American 
losses. But the men never hesitated. 
They swept the enemy from the outer 
line of intrenchments to the second line 
of defence. This was at once attacked, 
and from there the Spaniards were 
driven into the walled city. Then the 
Spanish commander saw that further 
resistance was useless, and he sent up a 
white flag. The bombardment was at 
once stopped, and soon afterward the 
American forces entered the city. Gen- 
eral Merritt assumed command and tem- 
porarily restored the civil laws. * 

On August 24th it was annoimced that 
the following American Peace Commis- 
sioners to settle the future of the Philip- 
pine Islands had been selected by Pres- 
ident McKinley : William R. Day, of 



THE SPANISH-AMKRICAlSr WAR. 



123 



Canton, Ohio, Secretary of State; Cush- 
man K. Davis, United States Senator 
from Minnesota, Chairman of the For- 
eign Relations Committee ; William P. 
Frye, United States Senator from Maine, 
member of the Foreign Relations Com- 
mittee ; Whitelaw Reid, of New York, 
for several years American Ambassador 
to the French Republic, and 
George Gray, United States Sen- 
ator from Delaware. The sessions 
of the Peace Commission were to be 
held in Paris, commencing not later 
than October ist, and continuing until 
an agreement was reached. 

The Commissioners met in Paris at 
the appointed time, and at once began 
their labors. Reports from time to 
time indicated that serious disagree- 
ments had developed, and it was even 
rumored that it would be impossible to 
reach an agreement that would satisfy 
both parties. The result, however, 
proved the contrary, and on the 28th of 
November, 1898, 
they reached an 
agreem ent respec t- 
ing the terms for 

establishing peace between the two na- 
tions. 

The Spanish Commissioners were 
compelled to yield to the force of cir- 
cumstances, to realize the hopelessness 
of further opposition and to accept the 
mevitable. In other words, the title of 
the United States to the possession of 
a vast colonial territory was confirmed 
and ratified at the meeting of the Joint 
Commission in Paris on the above date. 

This territory includes Porto Rico, 
the Island of Guam, and the Philippine 
archipelago, considered in its broadest 
geographical sense — that is, comprising 
the Sulu Islands. At the same time 



the Spanish sovereignty over Cuba was 
also relinquished. 

The treaty of peace was signed at 8.45 
on the evening of December 10, 1898. 
The treaty consisted of seventeen arti- 
cles, it having been found advisable to 
subdivide some of the articles in the draft 
agreed upon at the last meeting. The 





EUGENIO MONTERO RIOS. 

B. DE ABARAZUZA. 

J. DE GARNICA. 

W. R. DE VILLI-URRUTIA. 

RAFAEL CERERO. 

signatures of the American Commis- 
sioners and the names of the Commis- 
sioners acting for Spain were appended. 
The treaty of peace was ratified in the 
executive session of the United States 
Senate, February 6th, by a vote of 57 to 
27, the supporters of the treaty muster- 
ing but a single vote more than the 
necessary two thirds. There was no 



124 



THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 



doubt whatever that the Spanish Cortes 
would ratify the treaty, and the war 
with Spain was therefore concluded. 

The long agitation in Congress and 
throughout the country concerning the 
peace treaty was over, and the way was 
prepared for Congress to adopt such 
measures as it might see fit for the future 
government of the Philippine Islands. 
The debate in the Senate had been very 
able, and for some time the result was 
in doubt. Efforts were mide to pass a 
resolution declaring that it was not the 
policy of the United States to acquire 
possession of the Islands and make them 
a part of the territory of the United 
States. 

The insurgent army of Aguinaldo, 
which had resolutely maintained its 
position near Manila after the town was 
surrendered by the Spaniards to the 
American soldiers and sailors, made a 
fierce attack on the American lines on 
the evening of February 4, 1899. 

Insurgents Driven Back. 

Defeated in a desperate effort to break 
through the American lines and enter 
the city of Manila, the insurgent forces, 
after fourteen hours of continuous fight- 
ing, were driven from the villages of 
Santa Anna, Paco and Santa Mesa. 
They were compelled to retreat to a 
position quite a distance further out in 
the suburbs than the one they held be- 
fore attacking the city. 

The losses of the insurgents were 
neavy, the American troops having 
gone into the engagement v/ith great 
enthusiasm and determination. They 
made the streets of the city ring with 
their cheers when they were notified of 
the attack and were ordered to advance. 
Several of the yessels in Admiral Dew- 



ey's squadron participated in the fight, 
firing on the natives in Malate and 
Caloocan, and driving them inland from 
both of these places and inflicting heavy 
losses. 

Aguinaldo' s forces were completely 
routed and driven from six to ten miles 
beyond the positions they occupied 
when the battle began. On February 
loth a force of 6,oqo insurgents that had 
gathered at Caloocan was attacked by 
the Americans and defeated with heavy 
loss. On February i ith Iloilo was cap- 
tured by General Miller and the force 
under his command, aided by the war- 
ships Petrel and Baltimore. No casu- 
alties resulted to our troops. 

Peace Treaty Signed. 

During February Negros and Cebu, 
two important islands of the Philippine 
group, announced that they were ready 
to submit to the authority of the United 
States. 

On Friday, March 17th, the Queen 
Regent of Spain signed the treaty of 
peace, which was forwarded to the 
French Ambassador at Washington, M. 
Jules Cambon, for exchange with the 
one signed by President McKinley. 

Malolos, the insurgent capital, was 
captured on the morning of March 31st 
by the American troops, after a hot 
fight. The most brilliant exploit and 
the winning of the greatest American 
victory in the battles around Manila 
occurred on the 27th. The taking of 
the bridge over the Rio Grande at Cal- 
umpit was a deed of astonishing daring. 
It was the most strongly defended posi- 
tion held by the insurgents. Located 
on the north shore of the Rio Grande, 
opposite Calumpit, it is the most valu- 
able strategic point in lyuzon. The fact 



THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 



125 



that it was guarded by the most trust- 
worth \- and best disciplined regiments 
of General Aguinaldo made the feat 
more noteworthy. Army officers said 
the daring displayed by the American 
"Toops was almost unparalleled in the 
annals of modern warfare. 

It was a notable day for the Twentieth 
Regiment of Kansas Volunteers, com- 
manded by Colonel Funston. One hun- 
dred and twenty men belonging to that 
regiment crossed the river in the face 
of a deadly fire from 3,000 insurgent 
Mausers. This torrent of bullets was 
augmented by a fusillade of a Maxim 
gun, of which the insurgents had ob- 
tained possession. It was in this battle 
that Colonel Funston made himself 
famous by dashing forward with only 
nine men and charging the trenches 
which were manned by hundreds of in- 
surgents. They were thrown into apanic 
by this daring feat and put to rout. 

Desperate Resistance. 

General Lawton's forces had an all- 
day battle with the insurgents at I^as 
Pinas on June 13th. He called out his 
whole force of 3,000, and at 5 o'clock 
was only able to push the insurgents 
back 500 yards to the Zapote River, 
where they were intrenched. The in- 
surgents resisted desperately and aggres- 
sively. They attempted to turn the left 
flank of the American troops, but failed. 
By this desperate battle the insurgents 
lost a district which they superstitiously 
believed to be invulnerable against any 
attack of their enemies, it having been 
the scene of many former victories over 
the Spaniards. 

The greatest public demonstration 
in honor of any individual in the his- 
tory of our country took place in New 



York upon the return of Admiral Dewey 
from his great victory in the harbor of 
Manila. The Admiral arrived on the 
26th of September, 1 899, and was warmly 
greeted by city and state officials. As 
his flagship, the Olympia, came into 
the harbor, she was received with noisy 
demonstrations, and a multitude of peo- 
ple, on land and water, testified in every 
possible way, their admiration for Ad- 
miral Dewey. 

Grand Naval Spectacle. 

On the 29th, there was a naval pa- 
rade that was participated in by the 
North Atlantic squadron, and a vast 
number of vessels all gaily decked. It 
was the most imposing naval spectacle 
ever witnessed on this continent. Hun- 
dreds of thousands of interested specta- 
tors lined the shores, from the Battery 
to Grant's tomb on the Hudson, and 
cheered our battleships and other naval 
vessels. 

On the 30th there was a land parade in 
which 30,000 soldiers and civilians par- 
ticipated. Admiral Dewey was escorted 
first to the City Hall where he was pre- 
sented by the Municipal Government 
with a loving cup in the presence of a 
vast throng of people. Thence he was 
escorted to Riverside Drive, and from 
there made his way through a vast con- 
course of applauding people to the arch 
erected in his honor at Twenty-fourth 
Street and Fifth Avenue, where he re- 
viewed the parade. Many state gover- 
nors, their escorts and a large number 
of city and state officials were in the 
parade, and all attempts to describe the 
enthusiasm of the populace would fail. 

It was a memorable day in the his- 
tory of the United States, as it showed 
the patriotic feeling of the people and 



126 



THK SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 



their admiration for the famous hero of 
the Spanish war. 

From New York the Admiral made 
his way to Washington, where he again 
met with a most cordial reception, and 
on the 3d of October was presented with 
a sword that had been voted in his 
honor by Congress. An immense con- 
course of people surrounded the Capitol, 
on the steps of which the Admiral took 
his stand and was welcomed in an elo- 
quent speech by Hon. John D. Long, 
Secretary of the Navy. 

A Sword for the Admiral. 

President McKinley then presented 
the Admiral with the diamond sword 
He made a brief and graceful reply, 
thanking Congress and the American 
people for the distinguished considera- 
tion that had been shown him. Other 
receptions to the Admiral followed, all 
of which showed the appreciation of 
the public and gave evidence of the 
very high esteem in which he was held 
for his bravery, his adherence to duty 
and his gallant exploit at Manila. 

From Washington the Admiral went 
to his native town of Montpelier, Ver- 
mont, receiving on the way a continu- 
ous ovation. The celebration lasted 
two days and drew people from all parts 
of the Green Mountain State. On Oc- 
tober 13th Dewey laid the corner-stone 
of a new building to be named Dewey 
Hall in connection with the military 
school which he attended in early life. 
On the same day he arrived in Boston, 
where the town was gayly decorated 
and great preparations were made for 
his reception. The demonstration here 
was no less cordial and unanimous than 
elsewhere. 

The^ following day 25,000 school chil- 



dren welcomed the Admiral on the Com- 
mon with the waving of flags and the 
singing of patriotic songs. The enthu- 
siasm which greeted him upon his ar- 
rival at the City Hall equaled that which 
he received on the Common. His car- 
riage drew up at the entrance to the 
City Hall, and the Admiral at once as- 
cended the stand erected in front of the 
building, which was decorated in bunt- 
ing and evergreens. 

Boston's Hearty Welcome. 

By the stand at City Hall 280 trained 
singers from the Handel and Haydn So- 
ciety were seated. As the Admiral and 
his party appeared upon the stand the 
society sang, "See the Conquering 
Hero Comes," to which the Admiral 
listened, chapeau in hand, and at the 
close of which he stepped forward and 
acknowledged the reception with re- 
peated bows. The action called forth a 
great wave of cheers, which Mayor 
Quincy, arising, checked with uplifted 
hand. The Mayor then delivered the 
address of presentation to the distin- 
guished guest, who remained seated, at 
the Mayor's suggestion. In his address 
Mayor Quincy characterized the battle 
of Manila Bay as " the greatest since 
Trafalgar." 

At the State House the Admiral and 
Governor Wolcott and staff left the line 
and took up a position on the State 
House steps, where they remained while 
the parade passed in review on its way 
to the Common, where the colors carried 
by those regiments which were in the 
Spanish War, were formally surren- 
dered to the State with impressive cerc' 
monies. The exercises were viewed by 
Admiral Dewey, with Governor Wolcott 
and staff. 



PART II. 



European and Other Countries. 



CHAPTER IX. 

Great Events in English History. 



ingr 



N the beginning 
of the cen- 
tury Europe 
was in a state 
of turmoil 
and great up- 
heaval. The 
star of Napo- 
leon was in 
the ascendant 
and tremen- 
dous forces 
were gather- 
by which the 
destiny of nations 
was to be decided. 

The return of Na- 
poleon from Egypt 
to France enabled 
England to finish 
the work of expell- 
ing the French from 
the East. On the 21st of March, 1801, 
Sir Ralph Abercrombie inflicted a crush- 
ing defeat upon the French before Alex- 
andria, and compelled them to evacuate 
Egypt. By this success England se- 
cured her possessions in India, and 
prevented Turkey from becoming a 
dependency of France. Malta had al- 
ready been wrested from the French, 




and England was now supreme in the 
Mediterranean. Her danger was very 
great, however. The treaty of Eune- 
ville had left her alone in the struggle 
with France, and a league of the north- 
ern powers, with Russia at its head, 
was determined to compel her to aban- 
don her claim to the right to seize neu^ 
tral vessels carrying contraband of war. 

Great Naval Victory. 

In April, 1801, England struck a ter- 
rible blow at this coalition. A British 
fleet attacked Copenhagen, and after a 
desperate struggle silenced the Danish 
forts and captured the larger part of 
the Danish fleet. Denmark was forced 
to withdraw from the northern coali- 
tion, and the league was soon broken 
up by the death of the Czar of Russia. 
All parties were now anxious for a ces- 
sation of hostilities, and in March, 1802, 
the peace of Amiens was concluded. 

By this treaty France agreed to with- 
draw from Italy and leave the newly - 
established republics of that country to 
work out their own destiny. England, 
on her part, agreed to give up all her 
conquests except Ceylon, and to restoie 
Malta to the Knights of St. John. This 
treaty was not satisfactory to England, 

127 



128 



GREAT EVENTS IN ENGLISH HISTORY. 



and would not have been made under 
the Pitt cabinet ; but that great minis- 
ter had withdrawn from the govern- 
ment in February, 1801, and had been 
succeeded by Mr. Addington, the Speak- 
er of the House of Commons, a very dull 
man. No one believed it possible for 
■"he peace to be of long continuance, 
and, as a matter of fact, war broke out 
again in May, 1803. 

Napoleon seized Hanover, and col- 
lected a large army and a fleet of trans- 
ports and boats at Boulogne for the 
invasion of England. The British gov- 
ernment prepared to meet the threat- 
ened invasion, and at the same time 
sought to organize a new coalition 
against France on the continent. Near- 
ly 400,000 volunteers enrolled them- 
selves for the defence of England. 

Pitt Again in Power. 

In 1804 the Addington ministry re- 
signed, and the peril of the country 
forced the king to recall William Pitt 
to power. He was greatly broken in 
health, and the obstinacy of the king 
prevented him from receiving the co- 
operation of Fox, Lord Grenville,Wynd- 
ham or Dundas, whom he was more 
anxious to include in his cabinet. Still 
he addressed himself to the task before 
him with his old courage. 

In 1805 Napoleon, who had in the 
meantime become Emperor of the 
French, determined to begin the inva- 
sion of England, and conceived a skill- 
ful plan for dividing the British fleet 
and concentrating the entire French 
navy in the Channel. By his alliance 
with Spain he had obtained the ser- 
vices of the Spanish fleet, and witA this 
powerful armament he felt sure of pro- 
tecting the passage of the Channel by 



his army. The French fleet, under 
Admiral Villeneuve, sailed from Tou- 
lon, and effected a junction with the 
Spanish fleet at Corunna. Villeneuve 
then sailed to the westward, as if going 
to the West Indies, followed by the 
English fleet under Eord Nelson. Then 
suddenly putting about, he eluded the 
English and sailed for Brest, intending 
to unite with the French squadron at 
that port and crush the English Chan- 
nel fleet. 

Nelson, upon the disappearance of 
the French, returned to the coast of 
Spain and encountered the combined 
French and Spanish fleets off" Cape Tra- 
falgar, on the 21st of October, 1805. He 
at once attacked them, signaling to the 
fleet his memorable order of the day, 
" England expects every man to do his 
duty." At the moment of victory he 
was shot down by a rifleman, and died 
soon after. The sacrifice of England's 
greatest sailor was not in vain ; the 
French and Spanish fleets were annihi- 
lated. 

Napoleon's Brilliant Successes. 

Before this great victory had rendered 
the execution of his attempt upon Eng- 
land impossible. Napoleon had been 
forced to abandon his plan of invasion 
by the formation of the coalition of 
Austria, Russia, and England, and the 
gathering of the Austro-Russian army 
in the East. Breaking up his camp at 
Boulogne, he moved his army swiftly 
across France into Germany, and en- 
tered upon his memorable campaign of 
Ulm and Austerlitz. The shock of 
Napoleon's victory at Austerlitz was 
fatal to Pitt, who had long been failing 
in health. He died on the 23d of Jan- 
uary, 1806, at the esrly ^'^ of forty- 




f 




NAPOLEON AND THE QUEEN OF PRUSSIA AT TILSIT 

AT TH1« PLACE, IN EASTERN PRUSSIA, THE TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN FRANCE AND RUSSIA ANO 
ALSO BETWEEN FRANCE AND PRUSSIA WAS SIG ED, JULY 7th 180- ' 




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GREAT EVENTS IN ENGLISH HISTORY. 



129 



seven, a victim to his extraordinary 
labors. His loss was felt to be irre- 
parable. 

The policy of Pitt, to save Europe 
from the ambition of France, was vigor- 
ously carried out by Mr. Fox, his suc- 
cessor. All internal questions were 
subordinated to this great end, and for 
a while all parties united in supporting 



which was to draw upon her the coii^ 
demnation of the world. The Gren- 
ville ministry, which succeeded the 
cabinet of Fox, declared the whole coast 
of Europe occupied by France and her 
allies, from Dantzic to Trieste, to be in 
a state of blockade. It was not possible 
for even " the mistress of the seas " to 
maintain such a gigantic blockadcc 




BATTLE OF CAPE TRAFALGAR. 



tjie government in its efforts to accom- 
plish it. In September, 1806, Fox fol- 
lowed P'.tt to the grave, and on the 14th 
of October the decisive victory of Jena 
laid Prussia and all north Germany at 
Napoleon's feet. This might have been 
prevented had England been prompt to 
assist Prussia in her unequal struggle 
with France. 

England now ventured upon a step 
9 



Napoleon retaliated by an act equally 
indefensible. He issued decrees ex- 
cluding all British commerce from the 
continent of Europe, hoping that this 
exclusion would involve British man- 
ufactures in ruin, and so end the wal> 

These decrees, dated from Berlin and 
Milan, ordered that all British exports 
should be seized wherever found, and 
*-^atthis seizure and confiscation should 



m 



GREAT EVENTS IN ENGI.ISH HISTORY. 



extend to all neutral vessels that had 
touched at British ports. In this way 
he hoped to strip England of her carry- 



sels bound for any port of Europe sub- 
ject to the blockade to touch first at 
some Briti sh port, under penalty of 




ing trade, which would then pass into 
the hands of neutrals. 

To prevent this, orders in council 
were issued by the English government 
in January, 1807, requiring neutral ves- 



BATTLE OF AUSTERIvITZ 



seizure. These decrees and orders in 
council were simply so many outrages 
upon the rights of neutral nations, and 
were destined to involve England ere 
long in a new war. 



GREAT EVENTS IN ENGLISH HISTORY. 



131 



In February, 1 807, the G renville min- 
istry procured the abolition of the slave 
tradeby act of parliament, and England 
ceased to take part in that infamous 
traffic. This great work was accom- 
plished in the face of a fierce opposition 
/from the Tory party and the merchants 
of Liverpool, the latter of whom were 
unwilling to give up the profits con- 
nected with the trade in human flesh 
and blood. Encouraged by this suc- 
cess, the ministers endeavored to re- 
move the civil disabilities of Roman 
Catholic citizens, but upon the first in- 
timation of their scheme were dismissed 
by the king. 

English. Alliance Prevented. 

A. new ministry was formed under the 
Duke of Portland. Its leading spirit 
was the young foreign secretary, George 
Canning, an able and devoted disciple 
of Pitt. He came into office at a crit- 
ical time. Napoleon, after the con- 
quest of Prussia, had marched into 
Poland, and though checked by his re- 
verse at Eyleau, had won the decisive 
victory of Friedland, by which Russia 
was forced to consent to the treaty of 
Tilsit. The Emperor Alexander now 
began to court the friendship of Napo- 
leon in the hope of obtaining the assist- 
ance of France in the conquest of Tur- 
key. Russia closed her ports to British 
commerce, and compelled Sweden to do 
likewise, and to renounce the English 
alliance. 

Russia and Sweden hoped to add Den- 
mark to their league, and so obtain the 
services of the Danish fleet in their ef- 
fort to destroy the maritime supremacy 
of England. Canning prevented the 
success of this scheme by secretly equip- 
ping a fleet in the summer of 1 807 and ! 



despatching it to Copenhagen with a 
demand for the surrender of the Danish 
fleet into the hands of England, which 
power guaranteed its safe return at the 
close of the war. 

Denmark returned a spirited refusal 
to this demand, and Copenhagen was 
subjected to a terrible bombardment 
and forced to surrender. The whole 
Danish fleet, with an immense quantity 
of naval stores, was carried into Eng- 
lish ports. 

In spite of England's success at sea, 
however. Napoleon was supreme on the 
land, and carried out his designs on the 
continent without hindrance. He held 
Prussia down by force; changed Hol- 
land into a monarchy, and bestowed its 
crown upon his brother Louis ; erected 
the electorates of Hanover and Hesse 
Cassel into the kingdom of Westphalia, 
which he gave to his brother Jerome ; 
made his brother Joseph King of Na- 
ples, and annexed the remainder of 
Italy, even including Rome, to the 
French empire. 

The "Iron Duke." 

Emboldened by this success, he now 
sought to make himself master of the 
Spanish peninsula, and in his attempt 
to execute this design met his first great 
check. Spain was soon overrun, and 
Portugal would have shared its fate had 
not Great Britain come to her assistance 
with a small but excellent army under 
Sir Arthur Wellesley and Sir John 
Moore. After the death of Sir John 
Moore the chief command of the British 
forces in the peninsula passed to Sir 
Arthur Wellesley, whose able conduct 
of the war soon showed him to be one 
of the first soldiers of modern times. 
The French were driven out of Portu- 



132 



GRBAT KVBNTS IN ENGLISH HISTORY. 



gal, but Moore's unhappy fate gave 
them an additional advantage in Spain. 
While Napoleon was occupied with his 
struggle against Austria, Wellesley 
successfully held his own against the 
French in Spain, and won for himself a 
peerage as Lord Wellington. 

Disastrous Defeat. 

In July, 1809, a force of 40,000 Eng- 
lish soldiers was sent to capture Ant- 
werp, but the expedition failed, fully 
half of the English troops perishing in 
the marshes of Walcheren. This dis- 
aster brought about the fall of the Port- 
land ministry. It was succeeded by a 
new cabinet under the guidance of 
Spencer Perceval, a man of no ability, 
but who, with his colleagues, was re- 
solved to continue the war. The strug- 
gle in the peninsula was prosecuted 
with vigor, and if the English won their 
way slowly, they advanced steadily to- 
ward the French frontier. The neces- 
sities and disasters of the Russian cam- 
paign greatly v/eakened the French 
army in Spain, and simplified the task 
of lyord Wellington accordingly. Dur- 
ing the greater part of 181 1 Wellington 
remained wmparatively inactive, as the 
unsettled state of affairs at home pre- 
vented iiim from receiving the vigorous 
support he needed. In 18 13 he drove 
the French out of Spain, and crossed 
the Pyrenees after them. On the loth 
of April, 1 814, he fought the battle of 
Toulouse with Marshal Soult, and 
brought the war to a close. 

In the mean time George III. had 
been seized with a return of his insanity 
in the early part of 181 1, and the Prince 
of Wales had been declared regent by 
act of Parliament. The prince regent 
was strongly inclined to the Whig 



party, and was anxious to replace the 
Perceval cabinet with a ministry of that 
party. In March, 18 12, Mr. Perceval 
was assassinated by a lunatic, and the 
prince regent sought to recall the 
Whigs to power. He was defeated in 
this attempt, and the old ministry, with 
Lord Liverpool at its head, was restored 
to office. 

During the latter part of the Euro- 
pean war England had been drawn into 
another struggle. The decrees of Na- 
poleon and the orders in council of 
Great Britain had nearly ruined the 
commerce of America, and, after vainly 
endeavoring to obtain a revocation of 
them, the United States, on the 3d of 
Jime, 18 1 2, declared war against Great 
Britain. We have related the events of 
this war in the American history of this 
century. It was closed in December, 
1814. 

Alliance Against Napoleon. 

The return of Napoleon from Elba 
induced the allies to make extraordi- 
nary efforts for his destruction. An 
English army was sent to the frontier 
of the Netherlands to unite with the 
Prussian army under Marshal Blucher, 
which was advancing on the lower 
Rhine, and England furnished a sub- 
sidy of eleven millions of pounds to 
defray the cost of the war. The decisive 
blow was struck by the English under 
the Duke of Wellington, to whose ex- 
ertions and skill the overthrow of Na- 
poleon at Waterloo was due. 

In the final settlement of the affairs 
of Europe England played a prominent 
part — an influence to which the great 
sacrifices and tremendous efforts she 
had made to defeat Napoleon fully en- 
titled her. The conquests which she 



GREAT EVENTS IN ENGUSH HISTORY. 



133 



retained at the end of the war were the 
Cape of Good Hope, the Dutch posses- 
sions in Ceylon, Berbice and the other 
Dutch settlement in Guiana, the islands 
of Mauritius and the Seychelles, which 
were captured from the French ; the 
islands of Malta and Heligoland, the 
'latter of which had been wrested from 
Denmark, and some West India islands 
which had been taken from France and 
Spain. 

The peace of 1 8 1 5 left Great Britain 
feverish and exhausted. The national 
debt had increased to about $4,000,000,- 
000, and the heavy taxation to which 
the country had been subjected had 
produced general distress. The long 
years of strife that had ensued since the 
accession of Napoleon to power had 
impoverished the continent also, and 
had destroyed the market for English 
manufactures. An excess of produc- 
tion in the last years of the war had 
crowded the English manufactories 
with unsalable goods, and had put a 
stop to the demand for skilled labor. 

Discontent in England. 

A series of bad harvests produced 
great scarcity, and this evil was greatly 
increased by the selfish legislation of 
the land-owners in Parliament, who 
procured the passage of an act prohibit- 
ing the importation of foreign corn 
until wheat had reached famine prices. 
The sudden return of the large body of 
jnen employed in the army and navy to 
the pursuits of peace added greatly to 
the existing troubles, which in 18 16 
reached their highest point. The ' ' Lud- 
dites," a society of workingmen organ- 
ized in 1812 to resist the introduction 
of machinery into the mills, now broke 
out into a series of outrages and riots 



which gave the government great 
trouble. In the midst of these dissen- 
sions George III., old, blind and insane, 
died at Windsor Castle on the 29th of 
January, 1820. 

Ireland Independent. 

One of the chief events of the reign 
George III. was the union of Ireland 
with Great Britain. In 1782 Ireland 
obtained the independence of its par- 
liament. It thus ceased to be depend- 
ent upon Great Britain, though re- 
maining subject to the same king. The 
administration of Irish affairs was con- 
trolled by a selfish clique, who oppressed 
the remainder of the people so griev- 
ously that the country sank rapidly 
into poverty. Pitt made vain endeavors 
to break down this clique and do jus- 
tice to Ireland, but was defeated. At 
length an association of " United Irish- 
men " took up the wrongs of the 
country, opened a correspondence with 
France, and finally rose in insurrection 
in 1796 and 1797, being goaded to this 
step by the lawless cruelty of the Orange 
yeomanry and the English troops. Sev- 
eral expeditions were sent to their as- 
sistance from France, but were of little 
avail. They were finally defeated ; the 
insurrection was put down, and on the 
1st of January, 1801, Ireland was for- 
mally united to Great Britain. From 
this time the Irish parliament was dis- 
continued, and the Irish representatives 
were sent to the British parliament. 

Upon the death of George III., his 
3on, the prince regent, ascended the 
throne as George IV. He was exceed- 
ingly unpopular, and, as he had been 
at the head of the government for the 
last ten years, his accession to the crown 
gave no hope of a change of affairs. 



134 



GREAT EVENTS IN ENGI^ISH HISTORY. 



Within a month after his accession a 
plot was discovered by the police, known 
as the Cato street conspiracy, which had 
been formed by a number of desperate 
men, with Arthur Thistlewood at their 
head, for the assassination of the whole 
ministry. Thistlewood and four of his 
accomplices were hanged. 

George IV., when still Prince of 
Wales, had been induced by his father 
to marry his cousin Caroline, Princess 
of Brunswick-Wolfenbiittel. The mar- 
riage took place in 1795. The prince 
soon separated from his wife, and charged 
her with infidelity to him. His first 
act after becoming king was to renew 
this charge in the most public manner, 
and to cause a bill to be brought into 
parliament by the ministry to divorce 
and degrade Oueen Caroline on charges 
of misconduct. The queen was as pop- 
ular with the people as her husbund 
was odious to them, and their bitter re- 
sentment of the attack upon her forced 
the house of Lords to abandon the bill. 

No Crown For the Queen. 

The king, less sensitive to public 
opinion, resolved to oppose her corona- 
tion as his wife, and in this step was 
supported by the privy council. The 
queen was equally determined to main- 
tain her rights, and on the morning of 
the day appointed for the coronation 
presented herself at the doors of West- 
minster Abbey, but was refused admis- 
sion. This humiliation was fatal to her; 
she was taken ill, and died August 7, 
1821. 

A new ministry, under the Duke of 
Wellington, in 1828, reaped the honor 
of inaugurating an important measure 
of reform which was the outgrowth of 
the v/ork begun by Pitt and Canning. 



Until the reign of George III. the Roman 
Catholic subjects of Great Britain had 
remained liable to penal laws of such 
severity that the government was never 
willing to execute them. In that reign 
many of these restrictions were removed 
from such Romanists as would take aii 
oath prescribed for them, and finally all 
grades of the military and naval service 
were thrown open to them. They were 
still exclued from both houses of parlia- 
ment and from certain civil offices and 
privileges by the oath of supremacy and 
the declaration required of them againsi 
the doctrine of transubstantiation, the 
sacrifice of the Mass, and the invoca- 
tion of the saints. 

O'Connell in Parliament. 

Pitt attempted to remove these dis- 
abilities, but the king firmly refused to 
allow the question to be opened. Can- 
ning attempted to secure the same ob- 
ject, but died too soon. The accession 
of the ministry of the Duke of Welling- 
ton greatly dampened the hopes of the 
Catholics ; but they were soon revived 
by the sudden display of strength hy 
the Irish Catholics, who elected Danie! 
O'Connell, a popular politician, to a 
seat in parliament. O' Council was sus- 
tained by the entire Catholic population 
of Ireland, and demanded the removal 
of the disabilities of his co-religionists^ 
threatening civil war as the alternative. 

The danger was very great, and the 
Duke of Wellington brought in a bill 
which he declared was the only means 
of averting civil war, and which ad- 
mitted Romanists to parliament and to 
all civil and military offices under the 
crown, save those of regent, lord chan- 
cellor in England and Ireland, lord 
lieutenant of Ireland, and some others. 



136 



GREAT EVENTS IX ENGLISH HISTORY. 



The bill passed both houses of pLirlia- 
meut, aud received the royal assent ou 
the 13th of April, 1829. 

In 1S2S another reform was accom- 
plished in favor of the Protestant dis- 
senters by the repeal of the laws requir- 
ing all persons taking office to receive 
the holy communion according to the 
■fonns of the established church. 

Wiiliam IV. on the Throne. 

On the 26th of June, 1S30, George 
lA'., who had passed the last years of 
his life in seclusion at Windsor Castle, 
died. His only child, the Princess 
(Charlotte, being dead, he was succeeded 
by his brother William Henr\-. Duke 
of Clarence, who became king as Wil- 
liam I\'. 

The reformed parliament — the object 
of so many hopes and fears — met on the 
29th of January-, i S33. It passed several 
important acts, but its ^-iolence — espec- 
ially tliat of the great Irish agitator, 
O'Connell — went far to justify- the fears 
of its enemies and produce a feeling of 
reaction in the country-. Even the king 
went over to the Tories, dismissed the 
miuistr}-, aud placed Sir Robert Peel at 
tlie head of a new cabinet in November, 
1S34. The general election in the fol- 
lowing spring restored the Whigs to 
power, with Lord Melbourne as chief of 
the new ministry. 

Although the slave trade had been 
abolished by Great Britain, slaver}- ex- 
isted in the colonies until 1S33. In 
Augfust of that year the "Act for the 
Abolition of Slaver}-'' throughout the 
British dominions was passed. The gov- 
ernment paid to the owners of the slaves 
thus liberated the sum of $100,000,000 
as compensation for the loss of their 
propert}-. In the same vear the com- 



mercial monopoly of the East India 
Company was abolished, aud the trade 
of that country thrown open to the 
whole British nation. A new poor law 
was enacted in 1S34 to check the grow- 
ing e\-ils of pauperism. 

In the autumn of 1S30 the Liverpool 
and Manchester railway was opened bv 
its projector, G^sorge Stephenson. This 
was the beginning of the great railway 
system of Great Britain. The new sys- 
tem of transportation, being found suc- 
cessful, was rapidly adopted in various 
parts of the kingdom, and proved a 
powerful aid in the development of the 
trade and wealth of the kingdom. 

Queen Victoria. 

On the 20th of June, 1837, William 
ly. died at Windsor Castle. His only 
children, two daughters by his wife 
Adelaide, Princess of Saxe-Meiningen, 
had both died in infancy. His crown 
of Hanover passed to the next male heir, 
Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, 
the fifth son of George III., and thus 
became forever separated from that of 
England. William was succeeded on 
the throne of Great Britain and Ireland, 
in default of male heirs, by his niece, 
the Princess Alexandrina Victoria, the 
only child of his brother Edward, Duke 
of Kent, the present reigning sovereign. 

Queen Victoria was but eighteen years 
old at the time of her accession to the 
throne, but was popular with all classes 
of her subjects. On the loth of Febmar}. 
1840, the queen married her cousin, 
Albert, Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, 
a man of many \-irtues, and of ability 
and rare good sense, qualities which 
won him the aiTection and confidence of 
the English people, and enabled him to 
retain these feelings throughout his life. 



GREAT EVENTS IN ENGLISH HISTORY. 



137 



lu 1839 an association known as the 
" Anti-Corn-Law League " was formed, 
and devoted itself to the task of spread- 
ing its principles by speeches and var- 
ious publications. The association suc- 
ceeded in gradually enlightening the 
English mind as to the effect of pro- 
tective laws. Sir Robert Peel, who had 
entered office pledged to continue the 
protective system, became convinced of 
its inexpediency. In 1846 the failure 
of the potato crop in Ireland threatened 
that countr}- with a terrible famine ; 
and at the same time the harvest in 
England failed. 

Cobden and Free Trade. 

This emergency compelled the tri- 
umph of the free trade cause, and Sir 
Robert Peel was forced to introduce 
bills abolishing or reducing to a nomi- 
nal figure the duties on foreign corn, 
cattle and other articles of food. The 
bills were passed, but the resentment of 
the Conservatives was bitter, and drove 
Peel from office. He was succeeded by 
a Whig ministry, under Lord John Rus- 
.sell, which continued in office until 
1852. The complete operation of the 
free trade measures was not secured 
until 1849. The credit of the victory 
was due to Richard Cobden, the leader 
of the free trade party, and one of the 
wisest political economists England ever 
produced. 

In 1853 the designs of Russia upon 
Turkey induced England to take a de- 
cisive stand against the former power. 
An alliance was affected with France 
for this purpose in 1854, and was fol- 
lowed by the Crimean war. The suffer- 
ings of the English army through the 
neglect of the government in the wintei 
of 1854-55 aroused a storm of indigna- 



tion at home, which drove the Aber- 
deen ministry from power early in 1855. 
A new ministry was formed under Lord 
Palmerston, and devoted itself with en- 
ergy to the prosecution of the war. 

Sebastopol, a fortified town of the 
Crimea, underwent an eleven months' 
siege by the English and French. The 
allied army appeared before the town 
September 20th, 1854, and the grand 
attack and bombardment commenced, 
without success, on the 17th of Oc- 
tober following. For many months 
assaults were continued, ."-nd after re- 
peated bombardments a grand attack 
was made September 8th, 1855, upon 
the Malakhoff Tower and the Redans, 
the most imnortant fortifications to the 
south of the town. 

A Desperate Struggle. 

The French succeeded in capturing 
and retaining the Malakhoff. The at- 
tacks of the English on the great Redan 
and of the French upoi,' the little Re- 
dan were successful, bu! the assailants 
were compelled to retire, after a desper- 
ate struggle, with great loss of life. 
The French lost 1646 killed, of whom 
5 were generals, 24 superior and 116 
inferior officers, 4500 wounded and 1400 
missing. The English lost 385 killed, 
29 being commissioned and 42 non- 
commissioned officers, 1886 wounded 
and 176 missing. 

In the night the Russians abandoned 
the southern and principal part of the 
town and fortifications, after destroying 
as much as possible, and crossed to the 
northern ports. They also sank or 
burnt the remainder of the fleet. The 
allies found a very great amount of 
stores when they entered the town, Sep- 
tember 9th. The works were utterly 



138 



GREAT KVENTS IN BNGIvISH HISTORY. 



destroyed in April, 1856, and the town 
was restored to the Russians in July. 

During the American civil war Eng- 
land proclaimed a policy of neutrality, 
which was not fairly adhered to, the re- 
sult being that a number of Confederate 
cruisers, built, armed and manned in 
British ports, were suffered to go to 
sea and nearly swept American com- 
merce out of existence. The United 
States were thus given a valid cause of 
irritation against Great Britain, and at 
a later period presented claims against 
that government, which were settled in 
a Court of Arbitration by awarding 
damages of 15,000,000 dollars to the 
government at Washington. 

The Franchise Extended. 

A bill passed Parliament in August, 
1 867, which extended the borough fran- 
chise to all rate-payers and lodgers oc- 
cupying rooms to the annual value of 
^10 ($50). The county franchise was 
reduced to ^12 (|6o). Thirty-three 
members were withdrawn from the 
English boroughs, and of these twenty- 
five were distributed among the English 
counties ; the rest were assigned to 
Scotland and Ireland. This measure 
added large numbers of workingmen to 
the voting class, and when the elections 
of 1868 were held, a lyiberal parliament 
was returned by overwhelming majori- 
ties. Mr. Disraeli, who had succeeded 
Lord Derby as premier, withdrew from 
office upon the announcement of the re- 
sult, and a liberal ministry, with Mr. 
Gladstone at its head, came into power. 

The new government addressed itself 
with vigor to some of the most difficult 
questions of the day. An effiart was 
made to remove the chronic discontent 
of Ireland by the disestablishment and 



disendowment of the Protestant Church 
in 1 869. This measure put an end to the 
compulsory payment by the Irish of taxes 
for the support of a church with which 
the vast majority of them had no sympa- 
thy. In 1870 a land bill was passed, 
which established a sort of tenant-right 
in all parts of Ireland. In 1868 the 
non-conformists were relieved of the 
compulsory payment of church rates ; 
and in 1871 still further justice was 
done them by the abolition of all reli- 
gious tests for admission \o offices or 
degrees in the universities. 

Public School System. 

The army and navy were subjected to 
important reforms, and in the former 
the system of promotion by purchase 
was abolished. In 1871 a bill was passed 
by parliament establishing school-boards 
in every district, and levying local rates 
for their support. In 1871 a radical 
step towards parliamentary reform was 
taken in the passage of an act estab- 
lishing the practice of voting by the 
ballot. The magnitude and extent of 
Mr. Gladstone's reforms, however, 
alarmed the country, and in 1874 a bill 
introduced by him for the organization 
of university education in Ireland was 
defeated. The ministers appealed to 
the country, and were answered by the 
election of a strongly Conservative par- 
liament. Mr. Gladstone and his col- 
leagues thereupon resigned their offices, 
and were succeeded by a Conservative 
ministry, with Mr. Disraeli as premier. 

The power of Great Britain in India 
continued to increase through the early 
part of the century, and was exercised 
through the notorious East India Com- 
pany. In 181 5 the whole of Ceylon 
was brought under English rule, and in 



GREAT EVENTS IN ENGLISH HISTORY. 



139 



1819 an English colony was founded at 
Singapore, near the southern extremity 
of the Malay peninsula, and became one 
of the principal markets of the India 
trade. In 1833 the charter of the East 
India Company expired. The company 
was given by the British Parliament the 
government of Hindustan for twenty 
years, but its monopoly of the Eastern 
trade was not renewed ; and the com- 
merce of India was made free to all the 
subjects of Great Britain. 

Opium in China. 

One of the principal results of the 
establishment of the colony at Singa- 
pore was the sudden development of the 
opium trade with China. The Chinese 
government had previously tolerated 
this traffic, but now, becoming alarmed 
by the fearful evils which the use of 
opium was fastening upon the Chinese 
nation, endeavored to put a stop to it. 
An imperial edict prohibited the impor- 
tation of opium, but the traffic was car- 
ried on by the English and Chinese 
merchants in defiance of the law. The 
trade was very profi.table, and the con- 
nivance of the officials could be pur- 
chased by large bribes. The imperial 
government then ordered the British 
merchants to be blockaded in their 
warehouses at Canton until they surren- 
dered all the opium in their possession, 
amounting in value, it is said, to ten 
millions of dollars. ' 

The British government resented this 
attempt of China to protect her people 
at the expense of English profits, and a 
war of two years ensued. Canton was 
taken by the English, but was ransomed 
for six millions of dollars, and several 
other places were bombarded. The Chi- 
nese were at length compelled to make 



peace, and a treaty was signed at Nan- 
kin in August, 1842, by which the island 
of Hong Kong was ceded to the British, 
and the ports of Canton, Amoy, Foochoo, 
Ningpo and Shanghai were thrown open 
to the trade of the world, and were made 
the official residences of European con-, 
suls. China was also compelled to pa} 
to Great Britain an indemnity of $21^- 
000,000. 

In 1838 Great Britain became involved 
in a war with the Afghans, for the pur- 
pose of restoring to his throne Shah 
Sujah, the ruler of Cabul, who had been 
deposed by his people. He proved him- 
self such an execrable tyrant that he 
was murdered by his subjects. 

Revolt Against the English. 

A general revolt of the Afghans fol- 
lowed in 1842, and the British army, 
forced to retreat from Cabul, was cut off 
almost to a man in the Khyber moun- 
tain pass. An expedition under General 
Pollock avenged this disaster, and cap- 
tured Cabul in 1842. The war, how- 
ever, greatly encouraged the natives in 
their efforts against the English, and in 
1843 ^ "w^^ with the Ameers of Scinde 
broke out. It resulted in the conquest 
of that country by Sir Charles Napier, 
in 1843, who was appointed Governor 
of Scinde, and who ruled his province 
with firmness and success. 

In 1845 and in 1848 there was war 
between the British and the Sikhs of 
the Punjaub. On the 21st of February, 
1849, Lord Gough won the decisive vic- 
tory of Goojerat, and this was followed 
by the close of the war, and the annex- 
ation of the Punjaub to the British 
dominions. A little later Sir Henry 
Lawrence was appointed to the govern- 
ment of the Punjaub, which, since the 



140 



GRKAT KVKNTS IN KNGI^ISH HISTORY. 



days of Alexander the Great, had been 
the scene of constant rapine and strife. 
His rule was so just and kind that the 
Sikhs were completely won over to the 
English authority. 

The dominion of Great Britain in In- 
dia extended over hundreds of millions 



received for them from England. The 
cartridges of these rifles were supposed 
to contain beef-tallow, and as the use of 
this article, which is sacred to the Hin- 
dus, is forbidden to any devout native, 
several regiments objected to using the 
cartridges, and their wishes were re- 




THE STORMING OF DELHI BY THE ENGLISH. 



of people, and had been won and was 
maintained by a mere handful of British 
troops. The great mass of the troops 
employed by the English were natives, 
and were known as Sepoys. They were 
generally contented, and obeyed their 
English officers with readiness and con- 
fidence. 

In 1856 a supply of Enfield rifles was 



spected by the'government, which sup- 
pressed the cartridges. The discontent 
did not subside, however, but continued 
to spread, and early in 1857 a formida- 
ble mutiny broke out among the native 
troops in Bengal, Oude and the prov- 
ince of Delhi. 

Wherever they had the power, the 
insurgents massacred all the Enoflish 



GREAT EVENTS IN ENGLISH HISTORY. 



141 



they could lay hands on, sparing neither 
age nor sex. The middle and lower 
classes of the population joined the in- 
surgents, but the chiefs and large land- 
holders as a rule remained faithful to 
the government. The insurgents estab- 
lished their capital at Delhi, and pro- 
claimed its nominal king Emperor of 
Hindustan. Cawnpore was besieged by 
the Sepoys, and surrendered after a siege 
of two hundred days. The promise of 
safety made to the garrison was violated 
and they were treacherously massacred. 

Traitors Punished. 

Delhi was taken by the English in 
September, 1857, and the insurgents 
severely punished. Its emperor was 
transported to Burmah, and his two sons 
were put to death. The English made 
heroic efforts to re-establish their author- 
ity, and defeated the greatly superior 
forces of the Sepoys over and over again. 
Cawnpore was taken by General Have- 
lock, who then united his small army 
with that of Sir James Outram, and to- 
gether they succeeded in relieving the 
besieged garrison of Lucknow, the capi- 
tal of Oude, which had held out hero- 
ically against an overwhelming force of 
Sepoys. In this siege Sir Henry Law- 
rence was killed. 

The insurgents did not abandon their 
attempt upon Lucknow after the arrival 
of Havelock and Outram, but held on 
until March, 1858, nearly five months 
after the first investment, when the arri- 
val of an English army under Sir Colin 
Campbell forced them to retreat after a 
severe defeat. The relief of Lucknow 
virtually ended the war. The fighting 
continued through the summer of 1858, 
but the insurrection was crushed, and 
its leaders were put to death, or pun- 



ished with great severity. The British 
power was firmly re-established through- 
out India, and no further outbreak has 
occurred since this triumph. 

In addition to her possessions in India, 
Great Britain during the nineteenth 
century has built up a flourishing empire 
in the southern Pacific. It is larger in 
extent, and may yet be of greater im- 
portance than India. The vast island 
of Australia, which really merits the 
title of a continent, is only a part of 
these vast possessions. 

In 1873 a quarrel broke out between 
the English and the King of Ashantee, 
in western Africa, with respect to a sti- 
pend formerly allowed by the Dutch to 
the king. England had been formally 
in possession of the Gold Coast and the 
old Dutch colonies since 1872, when she 
acquired them by treaty with the Dutch. 
The colonial authorities now demanded 
that the King of Ashantee should with- 
draw his warriors from their territory, 
but so far from complying with this 
demand, the sable potentate proceeded 
to levy war upon the English posses- 
sions. 

The Ashantee Expedition. 

Late in 1873 the British government 
despatched a force under Sir Garnett 
Wolseley to the Gold Coast. He arrived 
on the coast about the close of the year, 
and at once advanced into the Ashantee 
territory. He met with considerable 
resistance, and lost many of his men in 
consequence of the unhealthiness of the 
country, but steadily drove the natives 
before him. About the first of Febru- 
ary he defeated the Ashantee forces in 
a pitched battle in the neighborhood of 
Coomassie, their capital, and on the fifth 
entered Coomaspie and received the sub- 



142 



GREAT EVENTS IN ENGLISH HISTORY. 



mission of the king, who agreed to enter 
into a treaty binding himself to respect 
the English possessions. This success 
broke the Ashantee power for the time, 
and gave peace and protection to the 
English settlements in western Africa, 
and prepared the way for civilization. 

On the 2d of May, 1876, Queen Vic- 
toria was formally proclaimed, in addi- 
tion to her other titles, "Empress of 
India." 

The struggle of the Irish people for 
* ' Home Rule ' ' enters largely in the later 
history of Great Britain, Measures en- 
forced in the interest of the landlords 
have been bravely resisted by the Irish 
peasantry. Organized effort was adopted 
and a land league was formed, which 
became dominant in 1880. In 1881 
Gladstone's Land Act was passed, yet 
legislation was powerless to appease the 
Irish sense of injustice and allay the 
excitement. 

Foul Murders. 

In 1882 Eord Cavendish and Mr. 
Burke were appointed secretary and 
under-secretary respectively for Ireland. 
Upon their arrival in Dublin they were 
murdered under circumstances of pecu- 
liar atrocity. The act created a pro- 
found sensation and served to render the 
strife more bitter. 

Disraeli (Eord Beaconsfield) having 
become prime minister, war broke out 
in Egypt and the Soudan. Dissatisfac- 
tion at home occasioned the downfall of 
Beaconsfield' s ministry, and he was 
succeeded by Gladstone, who, not being 
able to carry his "Home Rule" meas- 
ure, in turn yielded the government to 
Lord Salisbury. During 1887, and at 
the beginning of 1888, England, al- 



though at peace abroad, was agitated 
with domestic strife. 

On the 2ist of June, 1887, the queen 
attended the jubilee services at West- 
minster Abbey in honor of the fiftieth 
anniversary of her accession to the 
throne. The agitation by the Home 
Ruleparty of Ireland continued through- 
out 1890 and 1 89 1, Mr. Gladstone advo- 
cating eloquently the cause of the op- 
pressed Irish people. Mr. Parnell, who 
by his conspicuous services had greatly 
aided the Irish cause, died at Brighton 
October 6, 1891. 

The Queen's Jubilee. 

In June, 1897, Queen Victoria com- 
pleted the sixtieth year of her reign, 
the longest reign of any English sover- 
eign. This event was celebrated by a 
jubilee in which not only the people of 
England participated, but other nations 
through their representatives. The oc- 
casion was one of universal rejoicing. 

In October, 1899, war broke out be- 
tween the English and the Boers, a name 
given to the Dutch settlers in South 
Africa, since the sixteenth century, who 
still retain their national character. Dis- 
contented with the British rule in the 
Cape since 18 14, large bands of them 
in 1835-37 emigrated northward, and 
founded the Orange Free State, 1836, 
and the Transvaal Republic, 1848, after 
much fighting with the natives. In 
1899 the English, being greatly dissatis- 
fied with the Boers for denying to the 
Outlanders, or foreigners, rights that 
belonged to them, interfered in behalf 
of the English-speaking part of the pop- 
ulation, and the result was a sharp con- 
test. The spirit of the Boers was shown 
by resisting so formidable a power. 






CHAPTER ^.. 

France in the Nineteenth Century. 



RMIKS in grand array, victories 
but just won and destined ever- 
more to be famous, a brilliant 
conqueror whose word was 
magic and whose tread jarred nations, 
empires of the old world startled from 
the sleep of ages, mighty forces in con- 
flict and new ideas and principles seeth- 
ing and mystifying all political phil- 
osophers as to what the future would 
bring forth — this was the condition of 
France when the bell tolled for the de- 
parture of the old century and the new 
one was ushered in. 

The triumphs of Napoleon had already 
astonished the world, and tremendous 
combinations were forming for his over- 
throw. The unsettled state of affairs in 
France gave him an opportunity that 
he eagerly grasped. His ambition was 
boundless and for a time his power 
seemed to be. The French Revolution 
was just p?">t, and out of the chaos and 
confusioi'x a new national life was to 
come. 

A Directory was formed to adminis- 
ter the government, which was now 
conducted in a spirit of order and con- 
ciliation. In 1797 Bonaparte and his 
brother-commanders were omnipotent 
in Italy ; Austria was compelled to 
give up Belgium and recognize the 
Cisalpine Republic. The glory of the 
French arms was re-established abroad, 
but at home the nation was still suffer- 
ing from the shock of the Revolution. 
The Directory repudiated two-thirds of 
the national debt, and thus almost 
ruined the commerce and credit of 
France. 



Under the pretext of attacking Eng- 
land, a fleet of 400 ships and an army 
of 36,000 picked men were equipped ; 
their destination proved., however, to 
be Egypt, whither the Directory sent 
Bonaparte; but the young general, re- 
signing the command to Kleber, landed 
in France in 1799. The Directory fell 
on the famous "i8th Brumaire" (9th 
of November, 1799); under the constitu- 
tion of Siey^s the State was put under 
three consuls who, unlike those of 
Rome, were three in number, with dif- 
ferent degrees of authority. 

Bonaparte's Supreme Power. 

Napoleon secured supreme power as 
First Consul. In 1800 a new constitu- 
tion was promulgated, vesting the sole 
executive power in Bonaparte, who 
showed consummate skill in reorgani- 
zing the government, to which he im- 
parted a systematic efficiency and a 
spirit of centralization that secured a 
thoroughly practical administration. 
Having resumed his command, he 
marched an army over the Alps, at- 
tacked the Austrians unawares, and 
decided the fate of Italy by his victory 
at Marengo. In 1801 the peace of Lune- 
ville was concluded, and the boundaries 
of France were once more extended to 
the Rhine. 

England was the only country which 
refused to recognize the various Italian 
and German conquests of France ; and, 
with the exception of a brief period of 
peace, England remained the implaca- 
ble foe of Bonaparte from the days of 
the consulate to his defeat at Waterloo. 

143 



144 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



Every period of respite from war was 
employed by the First Consul in foster- 
ing trade and industry, and in oblitera- 
ting both in private and public life the 
stains left by the Reign of Terror, 

In 1804, on an appeal by universal 
suffrage to the nation, Bonaparte was 
proclaimed Emperor. The Pope came 



hands. For a time Napoleon's influ- 
ence with the weakened powers of the 
Continent succeeded in maintaining an 
injurious system of blockade against 
England ; and, except in the Peninsula, 
his arms were everywhere victorious. 
His marriage, too, with the Archduchess 
Maria Louisa, a direct descendant ot 




BONAPARTE DISSOIvVING THE 

to Paris to crown him and his wife Jo- 
sephine. Napoleon took the crown 
from the hands of the Pope, placed it 
on his own head, and then crowned the 
Empress Josephine, who knelt before 
him. A new nobility was rapidly 
created, and the relatives and favorites 
of the emperor received vanquished 
kingdoms and principalities at his 



COUNCII, OF FIVE HUNDRErJ. 

the ancient House of Hapsburg, 18 10, 
seemed to give to his throne the pres- 
tige of birth, which alone it had lacked. 
He kept up the Democratic impulse of 
the Revolution as much as was wanted 
to drive his engine of war. His tactics 
would have availed him little against 
the successive European coalitions had 
he not adopted the principle of national 




CORONATION OF NAPOLEON ,AND THE EMPRESS JOSEPHINE. 
10 145 



146 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



armies, general conscription, and forced 
requision introduced by Carnot, the 
"organizer" of revolutionary France's 
victorious resistance against foreign ag- 
gression. This principle has since be- 
come the outstanding feature of conti- 
nental warfare. 

It gave Napoleon an empire including 
practically the whole of Europe, except 
Russia, Turkey and Great Britain ; when 
it was quietly introduced by Prussia, it 
assisted effectually in bringing to a close 
the emperor's career, but not until he 
had made himself king of Italy, 1805, 
made of Holland and Naples vassal 
kingdoms, 1 806, set up in Germany the 
Confederation of the Rhine, conquered 
Prussia, 1806-7, occupied Portugal, de- 
posed the Bourbons in Spain, 1808, 
reduced the Hapsburgs after four cam- 
paigns from their medieval title of Ro- 
man emperors to the status of emperors 
of Austria, made of Rome a French 
town, and carried off Pope Pius VII. to 
Fontainebleau. 

The Emperor's Downfall. 

In the long run, the evils attending 
his high-handed policy both in France 
and out of it undermined his position. 
The French navy was destroyed by 
Nelson at Trafalgar, 1805, and the sea- 
trade of France much injured. His 
despotism, the unceasing strain of war, 
the burden of conscription, the estrange- 
ment between emperor and pope threw 
the seed of disaffection among the 
French people. 

From 181 1 to his final defeat in 181 5 
the emperor rapidly lost ground. The 
disastrous Russian campaign, in which 
his enormous army of 400,000 men was 
lost amid the rigors of a northern winter, 
was soon followed by the falb""or away 



of his allies and feudatories. Napoleon 
himself was still victorious wherever he 
appeared in person, but his generals 
were beaten in numerous engagements; 
and the great defeat of lycipzig, 181 3, 
compelled the French to retreat beyond 
the Rhine. The Swedes brought rein- 
forcements to swell the ranks of his 
enemies on the east frontier, while the 
English pressed on from the south ; the 
senate and his ministry betrayed his 
cause, and the allies marched on Paris, 
which, in the absence of the emperor, 
capitulated after a short resistance, 
March 30, 18 14. 

Begins a New Struggle. 

Napoleon now abdicated in favor of 
his young son, and retired to the island 
of Elba, the sovereignty of which had 
been granted to him. His wife and son 
removed to Vienna ; his family were 
declared to have forfeited the throne ; 
France was reduced to her former limits, 
and the provinces she had acquired were 
restored to their national rulers. 

On the 3d of May Louis XVIII. (the 
brother of Louis XVI.) made his entry 
into Paris. The conduct of the Bour- 
bons did not conciliate the nation; they 
returned loaded with debts, and sur- 
rounded by the old nobility and clergy, 
who had not renounced their former 
privileges, and who looked upon the 
generation of Frenchmen that had arisen 
since the Revolution as their natural 
enemies. 

A narrow spirit influenced the weak 
policy of the king, which led to the 
establishment of a strict censorship, the 
extension of the powers of the police, 
and the persecution of the adherents of 
the Empire ; while the lower classes 
and the army, who alike resented the 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



147 



humiliating reaction that had followed 
the former excitement' of war and con- 
quest, were treated with an indifference, 
and even contempt, by the returned 
ofl&cials, to which they were wholly un- 
accustomed. 

On the ist of March, 1815, Napoleon 
left Elba and landed in France. The 
soldiers flocked around his standard : 
the Bourbons fled, and he took posses- 
sion of their palaces. The news of his 
landing spread terror through Europe ; 
and on the 25 th of March a treaty of 
alliance was signed at Vienna between 
A.ustria, Russia, Prussia and England, 
and preparations were at once made to 
put down the movement in his favor 
and restore the Bourbon dynasty. At 
first the old prestige of success seemed 
to attend Napoleon ; but on the i8th of ^ 
June he was defeated at Waterloo ; and, 
having placed himself under the safe- 
guard of the English he was sent to 
the Island of St. Helena, in conformity 
with the generally acknowledged senti- 
ment that it was necessary to the peace 
of Europe to remove him finally and 
definitely from the scene of his former 
power. 

"A Martyr to France." 

On the 5th of May, 182 1, the de- 
throned Emperor died at St. Helena, 
after a captivity of nearly six years, in 
the fifty-second year of his age. His 
death was sincerely mourned by the 
mass of the French people, who re- 
garded him as a martyr to the cause of 
France. 

On the 1 6th of September, 1824, 
lyouis XVIII. died. He was succeeded 
by his brother, the Count of Artois, who 
ascended the throne as Charles X. He 
was a true Bourbon ; ignorant) narrow- 



minded, a firm believer in absolute rule 
and thoroughly under the influence of 
the Jesuits. In his disposition he was 
frank and cordial, and his friends were 
warmly attached to him. He was 
crowned in the Cathedral of Rheims, on 
the 29th of May, 1825, and the ancient 
ceremonial of the Middle Ages was re- 
vived in all its details for this occasion. 
Charles had been the first to emigrate 
from France in 1790, at the outbreak of 
the Revolution. He returned to it in 
1814 with the same ideas and prejudices 
he had taken away with him. The 
world had moved far beyond him in the 
thirty-five years which had rolled by 
since he fled from his country. 

The Nation Enraged. 

The reactionary tendencies of the new 
government alarmed and angered the 
nation. The first evidence of this feel- 
ing was given at a review of the national 
guard in the spring of 1827, when the 
troops, upon passing the king, shouted, 
" Down with the ministers! Down with 
the Jesuits ! " The king at once dis- 
banded the national guard of Paris, but 
unfortunately for himself left them in 
pessession of their arms. In the elec- 
tions of 1 827 an overwhelming majority 
against the government was returned to 
the chamber. The king was obliged to 
dismiss his ministers and to summon a 
more liberal cabinet. 

One of the first acts of the new min- 
istry was to remove the system of pub- 
lic education from the control of the 
Jesuits. This was a very popular meas- 
ure with the nation, but it gave great 
offence to the king, who, on the 8th of 
August, 1829, dismissed the ministers 
and appointed a new cabinet, with Pri nee 
PoHgnac at its head. The appointment 



148 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



of this ministry — every member of 
which was noted for his devotion to 
absohitism — was regarded by the people 
as a declaration of war on the part of 
the king against the charter and all the 
liberties of Frenchmen. The chamber 
of deputies plainly told the king that 
the new ministers did not enjoy the con- 
fidence of the country, and was dissolved 
by the angry sovereign. The deputies 
were re-elected by the people, and the 
\iew chamber was more than ever in the 
hands of the opposition. 

Trouble in Algiers. 

While this struggle had been going 
on in France, a foreign dispute had been 
engaging the attention of the govern- 
ment. The Dey of Algiers had robbed 
the French merchants residing in his 
dominions of large sums, and had in- 
sulted the French consul upon his de- 
manding redress. In the summer of 
1829 an expedition under the command 
of General Bourmont, the minister of 
war, was despatched to Algiers to obtain 
redress by force of arms. It landed be- 
fore that city, carried its defences by 
assault and compelled the dey to sur- 
render. Algiers was at once occupied 
by the French troops, who were en- 
riched with the spoils of the city. 

As soon as he learned of the success 
of the liberals in the election of 1830, 
Charles X. determined to compel the 
triumph of his absolute power by em- 
ploying a strained interpretation of an 
article of the constitution which author- 
ized the sovereign ' ' to make regulations 
and decrees necessary for the execution 
of the laws and the safety of the state.' ' 
By virtue of this clause he assumed the 
right to alter and abrogate some of the 
most essential provisions of the charter. 



On the 25th of July he issued five or- 
dinances, which appeared in the "Moni- 
teur " of the 26th. The first of these 
suspended the liberty of the press ; the 
second dissolved the newly elected cham- 
ber of deputies ; the third radically^ 
changed the system of election ; the ' 
fourth convoked the chambers for the 
28th of September following, and the 
fifth appointed some ultra royalists to 
the council of state. 

The appearance of these ordinances 
threw Paris into a tumult. The national 
guard took up arms, with the veteran 
Lafayette at their head ; the streets were 
barricaded ; the tricolor was displayed 
in the place of the flag of the Bourbons, 
and the royal troops were attacked by 
the citizens. The garrison of Paris was 
commanded by Marshal Marmont, but 
was insufficient to put down the popu- 
lace, though it obtained some import- 
ant successes. 

Troops Driven from Paris. 

At length the troops began to frater- 
nize with the people. The Louvre and 
Tuileries were carried by the populace 
and the troops were compelled to retreat 
from Paris. Charles X. fled from St. 
Cloud to Rambouillet, where, hopeless 
of regaining his throne, he abdicated it 
in favor of his grandson, the Duke of 
Bordeaux. He then quitted the king- 
dom and took refuge in England. 

In the meantime a number of leading 
citizens of Paris, anxious to keep the 
revolution within bounds, had prevailed 
on the Duke of Orleans, the cousin of 
Charles X., who was known to possess 
liberal opinions, to assume the control 
of the government as lieutenant-general 
of the kingdom. He convoked the two 
chambers for the 3d of August, and 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



149 



those bodies upon assembling declared 
the throne vacant by the abdication of 
the elder branch of the house of Bour- 
bon, and elected Louis Philippe, Duke 
of Orleans, " King of the French." 

Louis Philippe accepted the crown, 
and declared his intention to reign as a 
constitutional sovereign. On the 9th 
of August he took an oath to maintain 
the charter as amended by the cham- 
bers in the interests of popular liberty, 
and ascended the throne in the presence 
of the great officers of the state. Ab- 
solutism was dead in France ; the will 
of the people was supreme. 

An Eye to the Main Chance. 

The new king was the son of the 
notorious " Philippe Egalite," Duke of 
Orleans, who was beheaded during the 
French Revolution, and was in his for- 
ty-seventh year. He was sincere in his 
professions of hberality so long as his 
principles did not conflict with his in- 
terests ; but he thoroughly understood 
the art of accommodating himself to 
circumstances. He did not find his new 
position a pleasant one, for the legitim- 
ists, as the partisans of the elder branch 
of the Bourbon family, who supported 
the Duke of Bordeaux, were called, de- 
nounced hnn as a usurper and a traitor 
to his race ; while the Bouapartists de- 
clared that he had been made king by 
a clique in opposition to the will of the 
people. 

The leading principles of Louis Phil- 
ippe's reign were constitutional govern- 
m*:nt at home and peace with foreign 
powers. In the internal administration 
of the kingdom the king sought hon- 
estly to adhere to the charter. Two 
legislative chambers secured the rights 
of the people, and the elections were 



comparatively free. The press was 
nominally unshackled, but the govern- 
ment continued to exercise a mild cen- 
sorship over it. The friendship of 
foreign powers, especially of England, 
was cultivated, and France scrupulously 
refrained from engaging in the affairs of 
any European country, except where 
her own interests were directly con- 
cerned. The internal order of the king- 
dom was seriously disturbed by several 
popular outbreaks during the first years 
of the new reign. 

Popular Discontent. 

The revolution of 1830 affected the 
rest of Europe profoundly. In Italy, 
Germany, and Poland, there were out- 
breaks of greater or less magnitude. 
Belgium had never been satisfied with 
its compulsory union with Holland in 
18 1 5, and now rose in general insurrec- 
tion against the Dutch government. 
The Dutch troops were driven out of 
Brussels on the 23d of September, after 
a stubborn fight, and took refuge in the 
fortress of Antwerp. The Belgian prov 
inces organized a revolutionary con- 
gress, which now appealed to the five 
great powers of Europe to protect Bel- 
gium against Holland, and King Wil- 
liam at the same time made an appeal 
to the same powers to compel the Bel- 
gians to submit to his authority. 

On the 20th of September, 1830, the 
five powers signed a protocol recogniz- 
ing and guaranteeing the independence 
of Belgium as a separate kingdom, the 
crown of which was bestowed upon 
Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, the 
widowed husband of the Princess Char- 
lotte, of England. In June, 1831, Leo- 
pold was proclaimed king by the Bel- 
gian government, and in the course of 



150 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



tlie following year married the Princess 
lyouisa, the eldest daughter of King 
lyouis Philippe. 

The King of Holland refused to sub- 
mit to the decision of the great powers, 
and declined to evacuate Antwerp, 
which was held by a garison of 4,000 
Dutch troops, under General Chass^. 
He also retained the forts on the Scheldt, 
A treaty was signed between France 
and England for the assistance of the 
Belgians. A French army of 50,000 
men entered Belgium in November and 
laid siege to Antwerp, which, after a 
memorable defence, was forced to sur- 
render on the 23d of December. The 
Dutch king now withdrew his troops 
from Belgium, and the French army at 
once returned to its own country. 

Prominent Statesmen. 

The ministers of Louis Philippe were 
naturally chosen from the Orleanist 
party, which had made him king. Pro- 
minent among these were M. Thiers 
and M. Guizot, men of great abilities 
and widely different opinions. The 
former was regarded as the leader of 
the more liberal wing of the Orleans 
party ; the latter was the avowed cham- 
pion of the extreme monarchical wing. 
M. Thiers came into office in the min- 
istry of Marshal Soult in the spring 
of 1832, as minister of the interior. 
He betrayed a singular inconsistency 
throughout his whole political career. 

When out of office he was the cham- 
pion of the most liberal opinions ; when 
in office he was as conservative as his 
great rival, M. Guizot, himself On the 
22d of February, 1836, he became prime 
minister. Spain was at this time torn 
by civil war, and M. Thiers was very 
anxious to intervene in her affairs. The 



king, however, refused to be guided by 
his advice, and the ministry resigned 
after an existence of six months. 

On the 13th of November, 1836, 
Prince lyOuis Napoleon Bonaparte, the 
son of Louis and Hortense, and the 
nephew of the Emperor Napoleon, made 
an attempt to excite a revolt of the gar- 
rison of Strasburg, for the avowed pur- 
pose of overthrowing the Orleans mon- 
archy and re-establishing the empire. 
The troops refused to join him, and he 
was arrested and sent by way of South 
America to New York, 

England's Bold Move. 

In 1839, Mehemet Ali, the Viceroy of 
Egypt, threw off his allegiance to the 
sultan and conquered Syria. France, 
under the guidance of M. Thiers, who 
was once more prime minister, de- 
manded that Mehemet Ali should be 
allowed to retain Syria and Egypt. 
England, on the other hand, insisted 
on the imconditional surrender of Syria 
to the sultan, and induced the other 
powers to sustain her. The result was 
that the other four great powers, with- 
out communicating their intentions to 
France, signed a treaty with Turkey, 
in virtue of which an English, Aus- 
trian and Turkish fleet reduced the 
Syrian ports and compelled Mehemet 
Ali to withdraw his forces from Syria 
into Egypt. The matter was settled by 
assigning Egypt, in independent hered- 
itary possession, to Mehemet Ali, and 
restoring Syria to the porte. 

The "Quadruple Treaty" was re- 
garded by the French as an act of 
treachery on the part of England, and 
a general desire was expressed for war 
with that country. The principal re- 
sults of the excitement were the fortifi- 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



151 



cation of Paris with an enciente and a { 
system of detached forts ; and the fall 
of M. Thiers' ministry, which was re- 
garded as responsible for the advantage 
that had been gained by England, A 
new ministry, under Marshal Soult, was 
installed in October, 1 840. The guid - 
ing spirit of this ministry was M. Guizot. 
The quarrel with England was settled, 
and as a peace-offering Great Britain 
agreed that the remains of the Emperor 
Napoleon should be removed from St. 
Helena to France. They were disin- 
terred and conveyed to France by a 
French squadron, commanded by Prince 
de Joinville, the son of the king. The 
squadron reached Cherbourg on the 8th 
of December, 1840, and the remains 
were transferred to a smaller vessel and 
conveyed up the Seine to Paris, where 
they were interred in the chapel of the 
Hotel des Invalides with the most im- 
posing ceremonies. 

Death of the Heir Apparent. 

On the 13th of July, 1842, the Duke 
of Orleans, the eldest son of Louis 
Philippe and the heir to the throne, 
died from the effects of an accident. He 
left two sons — the Count de Paris and 
the Duke de Chartres. The former, 
who thus became the heir to the throne, 
was born in 1838. 

The harvests of 1846 and 1847 were 
bad, and these failures were followed 
by an era of high prices and great dis- 
tress throughout the kingdom. Wages 
declined and work was scarce. The 
king had never been entirely popular 
with the people, who wished to be rid 
of the whole Bourbon family. The 
general discontent at home was in- 
creased by the frequent failures in the 
foreign policy of France. The Spanish 



marriages, the quadruple treaty, the 
loss of the English alliance, and other 
matters, greatly tended to increase the 
dislike which the masses felt for the 
Orleans monarchy. 

The republicans eagerly fomented this 
discontent, and the policy of the gov- 
ernment, which was growing more con- 
servative every year, greatly simplified 
their task. In the session of the cham- 
bers in 1847 the liberals demanded cer- 
tain reforms which would enforce more 
literally the terms of the charter, but 
the government, under the guidance of 
M. Guizot, firmly refused to grant their 
demands. 

Political Banquets. 

The liberal members of the chamber 
now proposed to give a series of ' ' re- 
form banquets" in Paris and the pro- 
vinces as a means of manifesting the 
strength of their party. A banquet 
was arranged to be given in Paris, but 
was prohibited by the government, and 
it was determined that it should take 
place in spite of this prohibition. The 
government again forbade the banquet. 
The king and his ministers fancied 
themselves secure, when in reality the 
popular discontent had reached such a 
pitch that it was ready to break out in 
revolution at any moment. 

The banquet was abandoned by its 
projectors, who had accomplished their 
plan of placing the government in an 
attitude of hostility to the liberties of 
the people ; but on the 2 2d of February, 
1848, dense ciowds filled the streets of 
Paris, shouting, "Vive la Reforme ! " 
An army of nearly 60,000 men had been 
collected by the government in the 
vicinity of Paris, under the vetern Mar- 
shal Bugeaud, but no troops were used 
that day. 



152 



I^RANCE IN run NiNE:rEE:NTH CENTURY. 



On the 23d the national guard was 
placed under arms, but showed unmis- 
takable sympathy with the people, and 
prevented the regular troops from dis- 
persing the crowds in the street. The 
events of this day opened the king's 
eyes to the true state of affairs. M. 
Guizot at once resigned his office, and 
was succeeded by Count Mole, who pro- 
ceeded to form a new ministry. It was 
too late, however, to put down the out- 
break by a change of ministry. That 
night a detachment of troops fired upon 
a body of rioters which had attacked 
them, killing a number of citizens. The 
bodies of the slain were paraded by 
torchlight through the streets of Paris, 
and the republicans and socialists at 
once rose in arms. 

The King Abdicates. 

Barricades were erected, and shouts 
of " Vive la Republique ! " rose from 
the throng — cries that had not been 
heard in France for forty years. Count 
Mole now declined the task of forming 
a new ministry, and M. Thiers was in- 
trusted with it. The first act of the 
new minister was to induce the king to 
order the troops to withdraw from Paris. 
Marshal Bugeaud, upon receiving this 
order, resigned his command in disgust. 
This was on the 24th of February. On 
the same day the troops of the line and 
the national guard joined the people 
and marched upon the Tuileries. Louis 
Philippe, feeling that all was lost, 
signed his abdication in favor of his 
grandson, the Count de Paris, and with- 
drew to St. Cloud. 

The insurgents, however, paid no at- 
tention to this abdication. The Duchess 
of Orleans, with her little son, appeared 
in the chamber of deputies and besought 



them to sustain the claim of her child 
to his grandfather's throne. The mob 
broke into the hall at this juncture, and 
she was compelled to seek safety in 
flight. The royal family fled to Eng- 
land, where they obtained an asylum. 
There lyouis Philippe died on the 26th 
of August, 1850, at the age of seventy* 
seven years. 

France a Republic. 

On the 24th of February the republic 
was proclaimed, and a provisional gov- 
ernment, consisting of Lamartine, Du- 
pont de I'Eure, Arago, Ledru-Rollin, 
Marie, Garnier- Pages, and Cremieux, 
was installed. There was great danger 
that the revolution of 1848 would de- 
generate into a socialist insurrection, 
which would have plunged France into 
deeper misery and have drawn upon 
her the enmity of all Europe. 

The eloquence of Lamartine secured 
the adhesion of the populace to the re-, 
public. The mob had already sacked 
the Tuileries, burned the throne, and 
raised the red flag. Moved by the ap- 
peals of Lamartine 100,000 national 
guards declared for the provisional gov- 
ernment. The socialists were com- 
pelled to submit, and the better class of 
citizens, who dreaded a triumph of that 
party, gave their hearty support to the 
republic. 

A new element now entered into the 
politics of the republic. Prince Louis 
Napoleon Bonaparte made a second at- 
tempt at revolution at Boulogne, in 1840. 
He was captured, and sentenced by the 
court of peers to imprisonment for life 
in the Castle of Ham. In May, 1846, 
he made his escape in the disguise of a 
workman, and sought refuge in Eng- 
land. He was now elected to the as- 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



163 



sembly from the department of the 
Seine. The government declared its 
intention to prevent his return to France, 
and he resigned his seat. 

A new election was ordered, and he 
vvas returned by five different depart- 
ments. This decided manifestation of 
jthe popular will induced the govern- 
ment to withdraw its opposition. lyouis 
Napoleon then crossed the channel, and 
on the 26th of September took his seat 
as a member for the department of the 
Seine. His name aroused the greatest 
enthusiasm among the French people, 
and without having done anything to 
deserve it, he found himself the most ] 
popular man in France. The cause of 
his popularity lay in the fact that he 
Was the heir of the great emperor. 

President Napoleon m. 

Profiting by this popularity he an- 
nounced himself a candidate for the pre- 
sidency of the republic, and at the elec- 
tion on the loth of December, 1848, 
was chosen president by a vote of 5,500,- 
000 out of a total vote of 7,326,000, re- 
ceiving a large majority over General 
Cavaignac and all his other competitors 
combined. On the 20th of December 
he entered upon the duties of his ofiice, 
and took up his official residence at the 
palace of the Klysee. 

The national assembly was divided 
into a number of parties. One of these 
supported the president ; another was 
devoted to the interests of the legiti- 
mists ; a third to those of the Orleans 
family ; and a fourth consisted of the 
socialist deputies. With the exception 
of the first all of these were hostile to 
the president. The legitimist and Or- 
leanist parties were plotting for the 
overthrow of the republic and the res- 



toration of the monarchy ; the socialists 
were busy working for the downfall of 
the republic and the inauguration of 
the reign of communism. 

These parties hated each other in- 
tensely, and were united only in their 
enmity to the president. They wished 
to overthrow him first, and then settle 
their quarrels among themselv<^s. In 
this unhappy state of affairs the hopes 
of the nation rested upon the president. 
Seeing that the fall of the republic was 
inevitable, and knowing that neither 
of the contending parties possessed the 
confidence or represented the wishes of 
the French people, Louis Napoleon re- 
solved to overthrow them all, seize the 
entire government, and appeal to the 
people to sustain him. His plans were 
laid with skill and carried out with 
boldness and decision. 

Assembly Dissolved. 

On the night of December i, 185 1, 
the leading members of the assembly 
were arrested, and the government 
printing-office was occupied by troops. 
Decrees and proclamations were struck 
off during the night for use on the 
morrow. The army was devoted to the 
president and readily aided him in 
carrying out this Coup ^' £:^a^. 

On the morning of December second 
the Parisians were astonished by proc- 
lamations from the president announc- 
ing that the national assembly was 
dissolved; that universal suffrage was 
restored ; that a general election was 
ordered for the fourteenth of December; 
that Paris and the department of the 
Seine were placed under martial law. 

Another decree gave the names of the 
new ministry, stated that the president 
would submit to the suffrage? of the 



154 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



people a new constitution containing 
the following provisions : A responsible 
chief magistrate was to be chosen for 
ten years ; the ministers were to be re- 
sponsible to the president alone ; a coun- 
cil of state was to originate laws, which 
were to be discussed and voted by a 
legislative chamber ; and a senate was 
to be created, whose duty it should be 
to watch over the constitution and pre- 
vent infractions of it. 

This constitution was submitted to 
the people on the twentieth of Decem- 
ber, and was ratified by the votes of 
7,500,000 Frenchmen. With the in- 
auguration of the new government per- 
sonal rule was re-established, and the 
experiment of constitutional govern- 
ment in France came to an end. The 
majority of the French people were 
satisfied with the change. 

A Direful Panic. 

In the meantime, however, the Roy- 
alists and Republicans of Paris, recov- 
ering from their surprise, took up arms 
against the president. An army of 48,- 
000 men was directed against them on 
the second and third of December, and 
their resistance was soon put down. 
On the fourth the troops, in a sudden 
and causeless panic, fired upon a crowd 
of unoffending citizens, killing large 
numbers of them. Many prisoners were 
taken by the troops from the insurgents. 
These were put to death in crowds in 
the prisons, and 20,500 persons were 
banished to Cayenne. 

It had been foreseen from the first 
that the president would not rest satis- 
fied with the extension of his term of 
office. He was following in the foot- 
steps of his uncle, the great emperor, 
whose heir he was, and the restoration 



of the empire was the end of his schemes* 
At a grand banquet given to him at 
Bordeaux on the 9th of October, 1852, 
the president foreshadowed his inten- 
tions in his memorable utterance, "The 
Empire is Peace." 

On the twenty-first of November the 
electors were called upon to vote upon' 
a plebiscite declaring Louis Napoleon 
Bonaparte hereditary Emperor of the 
French, with the right of regulating the 
order of succession to the throne in his 
family. It was accepted by 7,824,189 
suffrages, to 253,145 against it. On 
the 2nd of December, 1852, the newly 
elected sovereign, who took the title 
of " Napoleon III., Emperor of the 
French," made his solemn entry into 
Paris. On the 29th of January, 1853, 
he married Eugenie Marie de Guzman, 
Countess of Teba, a lady of great beauty, 
and descended from one of the most 
illustrious families of Spain. By her he 
had one son. Napoleon Eugene Louis, 
born March 16, 1856. 

French and English Alliance. 

The first effort of the new emperor 
was to gain the moral support which 
would result from an alliance with 
Great Britain. In order to effect this 
alliance he adopted the English policy 
concerning the Eastern question. Early 
in 1853 the Czar of Russia, believing 
that the Turkish empire in Europe was 
hastening to its fall, made secret over- 
tures to the British government to join 
him in a division of the dominions of 
the sultan. The proposals we.re rejected , 
and England gladly availed herself jf 
the proffered alliance of France. 

Matters were not long in coming to a 
crisis. The Emperor Nicholas col- 
lected a large fleet and army at Sebas- 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



155 



topol, and sent Prince Mentschikoflf to 
Constantinople to demand of the sultan 
larger powers of control over the holy 
places of Syria and Palestine, and a pro- 
tectorate over all the Greek Christians 
within the Turkish dominions. This 
would have made him the sovereign of 
the majority of the sultan's subjects. 
A few weeks later the Russian armies 
occupied the Turkish provinces of Mol- 
davia and Wallachia. 

The Turkish government was panic- 
stricken, and but for the firmness of 
Lord Stratford de Redcliffe, the British 
ambassador, w^ho assured the sultan of 
the support of his government, would 
have yielded to the Russian demand. 
He encouraged the sultan to resist the 
unreasonable demands of the czar, and 
in the meantime a congress of the pleni- 
potentiaries of Austria, Prussia, France 
and England met at Vienna, and en- 
deavored to settle the difficulty by 
negotiations. 

War with Russia. 

Their efforts failing, the sultan de- 
clared war against Russia in October, 
1853. The Turkish army under Omar 
Pasha at once crossed the Danube, and 
defeated the Russians at Oltenitza. In 
January, 1854, the Russians were re- 
pulsed in a four days' assault upon the 
Turkish lines at Kalafat, and retreated. 
On the 30th of November, 1853, a 
Russian fleet from Sebastopol made a 
descent upon Sinope, destroyed a Turk- 
ish squadron in the harbor, and bom- 
barded the town, killing 4,000 people. 

The French and English govern- 
ments now demanded that the czar 
should withdraw his troops from the 
Turkish territory. Nicholas refused to 
answer this note, which informed him 



that his failure to reply would be taken 
as a declaration of war. In March, 
1854, France and England entered into 
a close alliance with each other and 
with Turkey, and declared war against 
Russia. The Russian army under Prince 
Paskiewitch laid siege to Silistria, in 
April, but the Turks defended the placr 
with such vigor that the siege was 
raised in about a month. A little later 
the Russians were defeated by the Turks 
at Giurgevo, and abandoned th': Danu- 
bian provinces and retreated into their 
own country. 

Heights of Alma Stormed. 

By this retreat the cause of the inter- 
vention of France and England was 
removed. They resolved, however, to 
break the power of Russia in the Black 
Sea by destroying the fortifications of 
the great stronghold of Sebastopol, the 
chief town of the Crimea. A com- 
bined expedition was despatched to the 
Crimea, and the troops were landed near 
the mouth of the river Alma. The next 
day, September 20, 1854, the Russian 
position on the heights above that 
stream was stormed and carried after a 
gallant resistance. 

The allies now advanced upon Sebas- 
topol, the fleet following along the coast 
and occupied the port of Balaklava. 
Sebastopol was immediately invested. 
The town was defended by the Russian 
General Todleben, and its resistance of 
nearly a year is one of the most memor- 
able events in history. The siege was in' 
reality a blockade, as the Russians were 
able during the whole time to maintain 
communication with their country north 
of the city. They made several vigor- 
ous attempts to break up the investment. 

On the 25th of October, 1854, the 



156 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



battle of Balaklava was fought for this 
purpose. It was made memorable by a 
heroic but fruitless charge of the Eng- 
lish "lyight Brigade" of cavalry upon 
the Russian artillery. On the 5th of 
November the Russians hurled a heavy 
force upon the English lines at Inker- 
mann, but were held in check until the 
« arrival of a reinforcement of French 
troops made the victory sure for the al- 
lies. Still later, on the i6th of August, 
1855, the Russians made their last at- 
tempt in the stubbornly fought battle 
of the Tchernaya, to raise the siege, but 
were repulsed. Sardinia had by this 
time joined the alliance of France and 
England, as has been related, and the 
Piedmontese troops won great credit in 
this last battle. 

Fall of Sebastopol. 

On the 8th of September, 1855, the 
French stormed and carried the Mala- ; 
kofif Tower, the key to the Russian de- 
fences, and the English at the same 
time carried the important work of the 
Great Redan. These successes cost the 
allies heavily, but resulted in the evac- 
uation of Sebastopol by the Russians. 
The city was occupied by the allies, the 
Russians retiring to the forts north of 
the harbor. 

In the meantime the English and 
French fleets had entered the Baltic and 
Polar Seas, and had inflicted consider- 
able loss upon the Russians in those 
quarters. Previous to the fall of Sebas- 
topol a British fleet entered the Sea of 
Azov and captured Kertch and Veni- 
kale. 

These disasters of Russia were partly 
atoned for by the success of her forces 
in the Trans-Caucasian provinces. Kars 
was taken by the Russian army after a 



heroic resistance and other conquests of 
importance were made. 

The Mexican republic was debtor tc 
certain citizens of France, England, and 
Spain, and resisted every effort of those 
powers to collect their claims. The 
debt to these three powers was about 
$73,000,000, of which ^263,490 were 
due to France. Finding it impossible 
to collect their claims by negotiation, 
the three governments in 1861 arranged 
a joint expedition to Mexico, to compel 
her to make provision for payment. 
France from the first determined to 
make this expedition the means of ac- 
quiring a footing in Mexico, which 
should lead to the conquest of that 
country, and the establishment of a 
Eatin empire in America. The scheme 
was in reality a revival in another form 
of the old French dream of a great 
American dominion. 

The French in Mexico. 

The expedition consisted of eighty- 
one vessels, carrying 1,611 guns and 
27,911 sailors and troops. It reached 
Vera Cruz in December, 1861. The 
city and its defences were evacuated by 
the Mexicans, and were occupied by 
the Spanish troops. In the early part 
of the year 1862 England and Spain, 
having become convinced of the designs 
of France, arranged their difficulties 
with Mexico by the convention of Soli- 
dad, signed on the 15th of February, 
and in April withdrew their forces from 
the expedition. 

Eeft alone, France reinforced her 
army, and placed it under command of 
General Forey. During the remainder 
of the year 1862 the French were put to 
great exertions to hold their own against 
the Mexicans. In March, 1863, having 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



157 



been reinforced from France, General 
Forey laid siege to Puebla, which was 
defended with great gallantry by the 
Mexicans, and captured it on the i8th 
of May, after a siege of two months. 
The Mexicans had based their hopes of 
saving the capital upon the defence of 
Puebla, and made no effort to defend 
the city of Mexico, which was entered 
by the French army on the loth of June, 
1863. 

The Emperor Napoleon now pro- 
ceeded to carry his designs respecting 
Mexico into execution. A council of 
notables was summoned, and under a 
controlling French influence declared 
in favor of the abolition of the repub- 
lic, and the establishment of a heredi- 
tary empire as the best form of govern- 
ment for the country. The notables 
subsequently chose the Archduke Max- 
imilian, the brother of the Emperor 
of Austria, to be Emperor of Mexico. 
These acts were submitted to the vote of 
the Mexican people, who, under the inti- 
midation of the French, ratified them. 

Oxir Oountry Intervenes- 

In 1866, the Civil War in the United 
States being ended, the American gov- 
ernment, which had viewed the course 
of France in Mexico with avowed dis- 
pleasure, demanded of the Emperor 
Napoleon the withdrawal of his troops 
from Mexico. After some hesitation 
Napoleon consented to comply with this 
demand, and the withdrawal of the 
French troops was begun towards the 
close of 1866, the result being that 
Maximilian was betrayed by one of his 
Mexican generals, was captured and 
shot on June 19, 1867. 

Alarmed at the rapid increase cf the 
power of I- ^ussia, the Emptxor Nc-po- 



leon, through M. Benedetti, his minis- 
ter at Berlin, demanded the transfer to 
France of the territory on the left bank 
of the Rhine as a compensation to 
France for the great growth of the 
Prussian power. Count Bismarck met 
the demand with firmness and imme- 
diately pronounced it "inadmissible." 
It was at once withdrawn. 

Scheme to Annex Belgium. 

France then proposed to Prussia a 
scheme for the annexation of Belgium 
to France, and declared that if Prussia 
would support her in it, she in her turn 
would support Prussia in the subjection 
of south Germany to the rule of that 
power, Bismarck gave no definite an- 
swer to this proposition, but laid Count 
Benedetti's draft of the proposed treaty 
among the Prussian archives. The 
Emperor Napoleon then attempted to 
purchase the duchy of Luxembourg 
from Holland. The Dutch king, who 
was greatly in need of money, was anx- 
ious to sell, but the scheme was foiled 
by Bismarck, who claimed I^uxembourg 
as a part of the old German Confedera- 
tion, and garrisoned it with Prussian 
troops. The North German Confedera- 
tion protested against the sale, and the 
transaction was discontinued. 

These diplomatic defeats seriously 
damaged the prestige of France. A con- 
siderable party was anxious to go to war 
with Prussia, but the emperor wisely 
refused to comply with their demand. 
The French army was inferior to that 
of Prussia, and had not yet adopted the 
breech-loading gun, without which it 
would have been folly to attack a power 
as well equipped as Prussia. As it was 
believed that a struggle with Prussia 
was inevitable, the work of reorganiz- 



158 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



iiig the French army was pushed for- 
ward with vigor. 

Since the establishment of the empire, 
France had made a great gain in material 
prosperity. The eighteen years of Na- 
poleon's rule were the most prosperous 
period the nation had ever experienced. 
The administrative talents of the em- 
peror were second only to those of the 
great Napoleon, and under his liberal 
policy the French commerce was care- 
JFully built up, the railroad system of the 
country was extended, and the manu- 
facturing and mining interests were ex- 
panded. The principal cities of the 
empire were enlarged, improved, and 
beautified, and Paris was made the most 
splendid capital of Europe. 

War with Prussia. 

In the spring of 1 870 the Spaniards en- 
deavored to secure a king, their throne 
having been left vacant by the revolu- 
tion of 1868. France was anxious that 
the young Prince of Asturias, the son 
of Queen Isabella, should be chosen ; but 
the choice of the Spaniards fell upon 
Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern-Sig- 
maringen, a distant relative of the King 
of Prussia. This selection was opposed 
by France, and was made the pretext 
for a war with Prussia. The Emperor 
Napoleon was by no means anxious for 
war, but was forced to yield by the 
popular clamor and the importunities 
of the empress and his counsellors. 

At this juncture Count Bismarck 
published the draft of the secret treaty 
which M. Benedetti had proposed to 
him for the acquisition of Belgium by 
France. This publication aroused a 
great deal of indignation towards 
France in Europe, especially in Great 
Britain, which had constituted herself 



the special guardian of Belgian inde^ 
pendence. The British government de- 
manded of Napoleon ample guarantees 
for the observance by France of the 
neutrality of Belgium in the struggle 
at hand. Wai was at once declared 
against Prussia. The hope which the 
French government had entertained of 
separating south Germany from the 
northern federation was destroyed by 
the prompt action of the south German 
states in support of Prussia. 

Soon after the declaration of war the 
emperor appointed the Empress Eu- 
genie regent during his absence, and 
repaired with the prince imperial to 
Metz. There he found the French 
army but imperfectly prepared for the 
struggle before it, notwithstanding the 
assertion of his minister of war that 
every preparation was complete. 

French Armies Defeated- 

The news of the fi.rst French disasters 
plunged Paris into great despondency. 
The senate and corps legislatif were 
convened by the empress on the ninth 
of August, and the OUivier ministry 
was forced to resign. A new ministry, 
under Count Palikao, succeeded it. 
General Trochu, who was regarded as 
an able soldier, was appointed governor 
of Paris, and mea,sures were pushed for- 
ward for the defence of the city. 

The news of the surrender of the em- 
peror and MacMahon's army at Sedan 
aroused a storm of excitement at Paris. 
The streets were filled with a wild 
throng of citizens and national guards, 
who surrounded the palace of the corps 
legislatif, and demanded the overthrow 
of the Bonapartes. Jules Favre, in the 
legislative chamber, declared that the 
empire had ceased to exist, and accom- 



FRANCE IN THB NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



159 



panied by a number of republican depu- 
ties repaired to the Hotel de Ville, and 
organized a provisional government, 
consisting of MM. Arago, Cremieux, 
Favre, Ferry, Gambetta, and others. 

The mob attacked the Tuileries, but 
met with no resistance. The empress, 
deserted by all her attendants but one, 
and by every domestic, was saved by 



mand was refused by the French gov- 
ernment, which declared that it would 
not give up "an inch of its land oi a 
stone of its fortresses." M. Thiers, 
though seventy-three years old, made a 
journey to the courts of England, Rus- 
sia, Austria, and Italy, to ask the me- 
diation and moral support of those 
powers in behalf of France — but with- 




escapb of the empress 
the timely arrival of a devoted friend. 
Dr. Kvans, an American, who enabled 
her to escape to England, where she 
was joined by the prince imperial. 

The provisional government was 
anxious to make peace with Ger- 
many, but the King of Prussia demanded 
the cession of Alsace and lyorraine, 
which had been partly overrun by his 
armies, as the price of peace. The de- 



EUGENIE FROM FRANCE, 
out success. In the meantime the Ger- 
mans advanced to Paris, and invested 
the city. Communication between the 
capital and the provinces was main- 
tained by means of balloons. 

M. Gambetta, a member of the pro- 
visional government, escaped from Paris 
in a balloon, and reached Orleans in 
safety. He at once began to prepare 
the provinces for resistance, and in or 



160 



FRANCE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



der to accomplish his ends assumed dic- 
tatorial powers. His efforts were lib- 
erally responded to by the nation, and 
several new armies were placed in the 
field, but the German troops steadily 
advanced from victory to victory. 

In January, 1871, the city and outly- 
ing forts of Paris were surrendered to 
the Germans. An armistice of three 
weeks was entered into in order to 
give the French people an opportunity 
to organize a government competent to 
conclude a general peace. The new 
government at once addressed itself to 
the task of conchiding a treaty of peace 
with the victors, and on the 26th of 
February the preliminaries of peace 
were signed at Versailles. With the 
exception of a garrison of 40,000 men 
in Paris, all the French troops retired 
south of the I^oire. On the ist of March 
a detachment of the German army en- 
tered Paris, but withdrew from the city 
on the 3d. 

Anarchy Triumphant. 

In the confusion which followed the 
surrender of Paris, the national guards 
were masters of the city. They seized 
a large number of cannon, and carried 
them to the heights of Montmartre, 
where they entrenched themselves. 
General Vinoy, commanding the garri- 
son of the city, attempted to dislodge 
them, but without success. Vinoy then 
withdrew his troops to Versailles for 
the protection of the assembly, and the 
insurgents occupied the Hotel de Ville, 
and organized a government which took 
the name of the " Commune." 

It declared itself the champion of 
municipal freedom, and might have ac- 
complished much for the cause, but 
unhappily the " commune " now passed 



out of the hands of its moderate meu:- 
bers into those of the revolutionary or 
socialist element which had given such 
trouble in 1848, and had been held 
down by the empire. The worst ele- 
ments of the city came into power withii 
the walls, robbed the banks, arrestee 
imprisoned, or put to death the good 
men who sought to control them, and 
declared that Paris should be destroyed 
if they could not hold it. 

Paris Again Besieged. 

A reign of terror ensued, and the 
forces of the government, under the 
command of Marshal MacMahon, which 
held possession of the majority of the 
outer forts, invested the city, and sub- 
jected it to a second siege. Several 
severe battles were fought between the 
troops of the government and those of 
the commune, and though the latter 
were routed with great loss, they held 
the city with such obstinacy that the 
government was forced to ask leave of 
Germany, to increase its army north of 
the lyoire. 

Paris suffei ed in this siege more than 
it had during the German bombardment. 
The government forces made steady 
progress, and at length the outer forts 
were entirely in their possession. As 
their final defeat became apparent the 
communists avenged themselves by 
overturning the Napoleon column in 
the Place Vendome. 

On the 2ist of May the government 
troops forced their way into the city, and 
during the night the communists pre- 
pared for their last resistance. For the 
next eight days a desperate struggle 
was waged for the possession of the city. 
The communists contested every foot of 
ground, and as they were beaten back 



I^RANCI^ IN tun NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



161 



miirdered the venerable Archbishop of 
Paris and a number of other hostages, 
and set fire to the Louvre, the Tuileries, 
the Hotel de Ville, and a number of 
other public buildings. 

An effort was made to burn the city, 
but was defeated by the government 
troops. At length, on the twenty-eighth 
and twenty-ninth, the last positions of 
.he communists were stormed and tlie 
insurrection was at an end. Immense 
numbers of the insurgents of both se.vcs 
were shot down by the troops during 
the fighting, and thousands of prisoners 
were taken. Multitudes of these were 
shot by order of the court-martial at 
Versailles for participation in the insur- 
rection. These military executions con- 
tinued until the world was sick of them. 

On the lothof May, 1 871, the definite 
treaty of peace was signed at Frankfort 
between France and Germany. 

The Immense Debt Paid. 

The revolt of the commune being 
over, the government devoted itself en- 
ergetically to the task of restoring the 
prosperity of the country and putting an 
end to the occupation of the provinces 
by the Germans. By the terms of the 
treaty of Frankfort, the sum of 5,000,- 
000,000 francs, or ;^ 1,000,000, 000, was 
to be paid to Germany as an indemnity. 
This immense sum was to be paid by 
instalments ranging over three years. 

As security for the debt, the German 
army was to occupy, at the expense of 
France, the greater part of the territory 
which it had overrun ; but the depart- 
ments were to be successively evacuated, 
in a specified order, as the instalments 
were paid. The first effort of the gov- 
ernment was to raise a loan of $400,- 
Joo.ooo. which enabled it to pay during 
11 



the month of June three instalments 
of the German debt, and thus to secure 
the evacuation of the Paris forts and a 
considerable portion of the territ)ry 
held by the Germans. 

This gained for the government of 
President Thiers the hearty support of 
the nation, and the co-operation of the 
assembly. After the adjournment of 
the assembly in September, M. Thiers 
made satisfactory arrangements for the 
payment of the fourth half milliard of 
the German debt in the ensuing spring, 
and so restricted the German occupation 
to six of the eastern departments. 

Germans Sent Home. 

M. Thiers also succeeded in perfect- 
ing arrangements by which the whole 
of the German debt was discharged, and 
the country entirely evacuated by the 
foreign army, in the early part of Sep- 
tember, 1873, a year and a half in ad- 
vance of the time fixed by the treaty of 
Frankfort. The money for this purpose 
was raised by means of popular loans 
which were readily taken by the French 
people, who cordially sustained the 
president's efforts to rid the country of 
the presence of the conquerors. 

During the latter part of the summex 
of 1 87 1 the title of M. Thiers was 
changed from " Chief of the Executive 
Power" to that of "President of the 
French Republic." 

On the 9th of January, 1873, the ex- 
Emperor Napoleon III. died at Chisel- 
hurst, in England, where he had resided 
since his release from captivity. His 
death was sincerely regretted b)' the 
French people, to whom, in spite of his 
many faults, he had been a wise and 
generous friend. By the death of the 
ex-emperor the plans of the imperialist 



162 



l^RANCE IN The NINETBBNTH CENTURY. 



party in i^idnce were for the time en- 
tirely overthrown. 

The government now felt itself strong 
enough to proceed with the trial of 
Marshal Bazaine for the loss of Metz 
during the war with Germany. He was 
charged with treason in surrendering 
his army and the fortress of Metz with- 
out sufficient cause; and on the loth of 
December was found guilty by the 
court-martial, and was sentenced to 
death. His sentence was commuted by 
President MacMahon to degradation 
from his rank and twenty years impris- 
onment. He was confined in the fort- 
ress of the island of St. Marguerite, but 
succeeded in escaping from it during 
the summer of 1874. 

Brilliant Statesman Dt^ad 

In 1879 M. Jules Grevy was elected 
president of the republic by the assem- 
bly. The choice for president of the 
assembly fell on Gambetta, who, after 
an almost unexampled career of pop- 
ularity, died December 31, 1882, and 
thereby was removed the most brilliant 
statesman and strongest personal force 
iu the councils of the nation. Owing 
to the scandals connected with the sale 
and purchase of decorations. President 
Ixr^vy resigned in November, 1 887, and 
M. Carnot was chosen as his successor. 

At Lyons, on June 24, 1894, Presi- 
dent Carnot was assassinated by an 
Italian anarchist. Great excitement pre- 
vailed throughout the country. The 
Senate and House of Representatives at 
Washington adjourned in honor of the 
French president. On June 27th the 
National Assembly elected M. Casimir- 
Perier to be the successor of President 



Carnot. The new president retainea 
his office but a short time. On January 
15, 1895, he resigned, and on the seven- 
teenth of the same month, M. Francois 
Felix Faure was elected to be his suc- 
cessor. On account of the sudden death 
of President Faure, whose adminis- 
tration of affairs was successful, the 
distinguished Loubet was appointed 
president by the National Assembly. 

Famous Dreyfus Trial. 

In 1 897 Captain Dreyfus, an officer in 
the French army, was accused and tried 
for treason, and was convicted. The 
specific charge was the sale of govern- 
ment secrets to German officials con- 
cerning the equipments and movements 
of the French army. Dreyfus was sent- 
enced to imprisonment for life. It was 
believed by many distinguished persons 
that he was not the real culprit, and 
that the fact of his being a Jew would 
account for the charge being laid upon 
him that should properly have been 
attached to others. Emile Zola, the 
celebrated author, espoused his cause 
with great ardor and was himself tried 
for charges made against the French 
military authorities, and convicted and 
sentenced to pay a fine. 

The injustice done to Dreyfus would 
not slumber. The case was reopened 
and after a most exciting trial in the 
summer of 1899, he was again convicted 
by a military tribunal, but with a recoKi- 
mendation to mercy. By this verdict 
the military power shielded itself, and, 
by a swift pardon from President lyou- 
bet, Dreyfus was restored to his position 
in the army and was relieved of thf 
charg-es brought against him. 



CHAPTER XI. 



The New German Empire. 



IN common with all the rest of Eu- 
rope Germany was disturbed and 
deeply agitated by the ambitious 
schemes of Napoleon at the begin- 
ning of the nineteenth century. Francis 
11. came to the throne in 1792, and after 
a series of defeats by the armies of the 
French Republic, and the adhesion, in 
1805, of many of the German princes 
to the alliance of France, which led to 
the subsequent formation of the Rhenish 
Confederation under the protectorate of 
Napoleon, resigned the German crown, 
and assumed the title of Emperor of 
Austria. 

From this period till the Congress of 
Vienna, 18 14-15, Gei^^iany was almost 
entirely at the mercy of Napoleon, who 
deposed the established sovereigns, and 
dismembered their states in favor of his 
partisans and dependants, while he crip- 
pled the trade of the country, and ex- 
hausted its resources by the extortion 
of subsidies or contributions. 

The second peace of Paris, in 18 14, 
restored to Germany all that had be- 
longed to her in 1792, and as a recon- 
struction of the old empire was no longer 
possible, those states which still main- 
tained their sovereignty combined, in 
18 15, to form a German Confederation. 
Of the three hundred states into which 
the empire had once been divided there 
now remained only thirty-nine, a num- 
ber which was afterwards reduced to 
liirty-five by the extinction of several 
petty dynasties. 

The diet was now reorganized, and 
appointed to hold its meetings at Frank- 
fort-on-the-Main, after having been for- 



mally recognized by all the allied states 
as the legislative and executive organ 
of the confederation ; but it failed to 
satisfy the expectations of the nation, 
and soon became a mere political tool 
in the hands of the princes, who simply 
made its decrees subservient ^0 their 
own efforts for the suppression o. ever}' 
progressive movement. 

New Government Organized. 

The festival of the Wartburg, and 
the assassination of Kotzebue, were 
seized as additional excuses for reaction; 
and though the French Revolution of 
1830 so influenced some few of the Ger- 
man States as to compel their rulers to 
grant written constitutions to their sub- 
jects, the effect was transient, and it was 
not till 1848 that the German nation 
gave expression, by open insurrectionary 
movements, to the discontent and the 
sense of oppression which had long pos- 
sessed the minds of the people. The 
princes endeavored by hasty concessions 
to arrest the progress of republican prin- 
ciples, and, fully recognizing the in- 
efficiency of the diet, they gave their 
sanction to the convocation, by a pro- 
visional self-constituted assembly, of a 
national congress of representatives o*^" 
the people. 

Archduke John of Austria was elected 
Vicar of the newly-organized national 
government; but he soon disappointed 
the hopes of the assembly by his evident 
attempts to frustrate a'n energetic action 
on the side of the parliament, while the 
speedy success of the anti-republican 
partv in Austria and Prussia damped 

ltj3 



164 



THE NEW GERMAN EMPIRE. 



the hopes of the progressionists. The 
refusal of the king of Prussia to accept 
the imperial crown which the parlia- 
ment offered him in 1 849, was followed 
by the election of a provisional regency 
of the empire ; but as nearly half the 
members had declined taking part in 
hese proceedings, or in a previous meas- 
'/ire, by which Austria had been ex- 
cluded, by a single vote, from the Ger- 
man Confederation, the assembly soon 
lapsed into a state of anarchy and im- 
potence, which terminated in its dis- 
solution. 

Insurrections Suppressed. 

The sanguinary manner in which in- 
surrectionary movements had in the 
neanwhile been suppressed by Prussian 
troops both in Prussia and Saxony put 
an effectual end to republican demon- 
strations; and in 1850 Austria and Prus- 
sia, after exhibiting mutual jealousy and 
ill-will which more than once seemed 
likely to end in war, combined to restore 
the diet, whose first acts were the inter- 
vention in Sleswick-Holstein in favor 
of Denmark, and the abolition of the 
free constitutions of several of the lesser 
states. 

From that period the diet became the 
arena in which Austria and Prussia 
=trove to secure the supremacy and 
championship of Germany ; every meas- 
ure of public interest was made subser- 
vient to the views of one or other of 
these rival powers ; and the Sleswick- 
Holstein difficulties were the principal 
questions under discussion in the federal 
parliament, down to the rupture between 
Prussia and Austria, and the dissolution 
of the Bund in 1866. 

The immediate occasion of the war 
of rS66 was the difference that arose 



between Prussia and Austria, after the 
convention of Gastein, 1865, as to the 
occupation and disposal of the territory 
taken from Denmark in the short war 
of 1864. But the real grounds lay in 
that rivalry between the two states fo, 
the leadership of Germany which haj 
shown itself at many epochs of theii 
history. There can be little doubt that 
the feeling of the German people, as 
distinguished from the princes and bu- 
reaucracy, had, in recent times at least 
been in favor of the purely German 
Prussia as their leader, rather than 
Austria. 

And when the parliament of Frank- 
fort, in 1849, offered the imperial crown 
to the king of Prussia, the unity of Ger- 
many might have been secured without 
bloodshed, had the monarch been less 
scrupulous, or had he had a B ism arc?' 
for his adviser. But that opportunit-" 
being let slip, and the incubus of tht 
"Bund" being restored, it became ap- 
parent that the knot must be cut by the 
sword. 

Austria and Prussia. 

By the treaty of Gastein Austria and 
Prussia agreed to a joint occupation of 
the Elbe duchies; but to prevent colli- 
sion it was judged prudent that Austria 
should occupy Holstein, and Prussia 
Sleswick. Already a difference of pol- 
icy had begun to show itself : Prussia 
was believed to have the intention of 
annexing the duchies ; while Austria 
began to favor the claims of Prince 
Frederick of Augustenburg. In the 
meantime, both nations were making 
ready for the struggle ; and Italy, look- 
ing upon the quarrel as a precious op- 
portunity to strike a blow for the liber- 
ation of Venetia, had secretly entered 
into an alliance with Prussia 



THE NEW GERMAN EMPIRE. 



l6e 



m the sitting of the German diet, 
June I, 1866, Austria, disregarding the 
convention of Gastein, placed the whole 
matter at the disposal of the Bund, and 
then proceeded to convoke the states of 
Holstein ' ' to assist in the settlement of 
the future destiny of the duchy." Prus- 
sia protested against this as an insult 
and a violation of treaty ; demanded the 
re-establishment of the joint occupation ; 
and, while inviting Austria to send 
troops into Sleswick, marched troops of 
her own into Holstein, 

"Act of Violence." 

Instea»„ of responding to this invita- 
tion, Austria withdrew her forces alto- 
gether from Holstein, under protest; 
and then, calling attention to this "act 
of violence ' ' on the part of Prussia, pro- 
posed that the diet should decree " fed- 
eral execution" against the enemy of 
the empire This eventful resolution 
was carried by a great majority on the 
14th of June, 1866; Hanover, Saxony, 
Hesse-Cassel and Hesse- Darmstadt vot- 
ing for it. The resolution having passed, 
the Prussian plenipotentiary, in the 
name of his government, declared the 
German Confederation dissolved for 
ever, and immediately withdrev/. 

Thereupon identical notes were sent 
by Prussia to the courts of Saxony, 
Hanover and Hesse-Cassel. The terms 
were not accepted, and the Prussian 
troops at once took military possession 
of the three kingdoms without resist- 
ance. War was now declared against 
Austria ; the Prussian host, numbering 
in all 225,400 men, with 774 guns, in- 
vaded Boheinia at three several points. 
The Austrians, who had been surprised 
in a state of ill-organized unreadiness, 
liad assembled an army of 262,400 men 



and 716 guns; and the greater portion 
of these were stationed, under General 
Benedek, behind the Riesengebirge, 
expecting the attack from Silesia. 

The Prussian armies in the meantime 
crossed the Erzgebirge without opposi- 
tion, drove the Austrian armv steadily 
and quickly back with heavy losses, and 
after effecting a junction moved steadily 
forward to meet the Austrian army, now 
concentrated between Sadowa and Ko- 
niggratz. Here, on July 3d, was fought 
the decisive battle. The Austrian cav- 
alry made heroic efforts to turn the tide 
of victory; but the stern, trained valor 
of the Prussians, armed with the till 
then little known breech-loading "nee- 
dle-gun," was invincible, and the Aus- 
trian army was broken and dissolved m 
precipitate flight. 

Disastrous Defeat. 

The Prussians lost upwards of 9000 
killed and wounded ; the Austrian loss 
was 16,235 killed and wounded, a.nd 
22,684 prisoners. After this deci5ive 
defeat, which is known as the battle ol 
Koniggratz or Sadowa, all hope of stay- 
ing the advance of the Prussians with 
the army of Benedek was at an en(< ; a 
truce was asked for, but refused; and 
not till the victorious Prussians had 
pushed forward towards Vienna, whither 
Benedek had drawn his beaten forces, 
was a truce obtained through the agency 
of the emperor of the French. Italy, 
though more than half-inclined to stand 
out for the cession by Austria of the 
Trentino, as well as Venetia, reluctantly 
agreed to the armistice, August 12th. 

A brief campaign sufficed for the de- 
feat of the minor states of Germany 
that had joined Austria — viz., Bavaria, 
Wurteinberg, Baden and Hesse-Darm- 



166 



THE NEW GERMAN EMPIRE. 



stadt ; and after peace had at last been 
arranged, some of them were forced to 
submit to a certain loss of territory. 
Saxony only escaped incorporation with 
Prussia through the resolute opposition 
of Austria supported by France ; but 
the little kingdom, like all die other 
states that had taken arms against Prus- 



burg ; and the other states north of the 
Main were united with Prussia in a con- 
federacy of a more intimate nature than 
before existed, called the North German 
Confederation. 

Austria, by the treaty of Prague, 
August 20, 1866, was completely ex- 
cluded from participation in the new 




BATTLE OF KONIGGRATZ, OR SADOWA. 



sia, was forced to pay a heavy war in- 
demnity. Even the little principality 
of Reuss had to pay 100,000 thalers into 
the fund for Prussian invalids. 

The states north of the Main which 
had taken up arms against Prussia were 
completely incorporated — viz., Hanover, 
Hesse- Cassel, Nassau, Frankfort and a 
small portion of Hesse-Darmstadt, as 
"rell as Sleswick-Holstein and I^auen- 



organization of the German states, and 
formally agreed to the surrender of 
Venetia to Italy, to the incorporation 
of Sleswick-Holstein with Prussia, aud- 
io the new arrangements made by Prus- 
sia in Germany. A portion of the fifth 
article of this treaty secured that, if the 
"inhabitants of the northern districts 
of Sleswick declare, by a free vote, their 
desire to be united to Denmark, they 



THE NEW GEEMAN EMPIRE. 



16? 



<shall be restored accordingly;" but 
this was withdrawn in 1878 by secret 
treaty between Austria and Germany. 
Though losing no territory to Prussia, 
Austria had to pay forty millions of 
thalers for the expenses of the war. 

The North German Confederation, as 
thus constituted, possessed a common 
parliament, elected by universal suff- 
rage, in which each state was represented 
according to its population. The first 
or constituent parliament met early in 
1867, and adopted, with a few modifica- 
tions, the constitution proposed by 
Count Bismarck. The new elections 
then took place, and the first regular 
North German parliament met in Sep- 
tember, 1867. 

Union of German States. 

According to this constitution, there 
was to be a common army and fleet, 
under the sole command of Prussia ; 
a common diplomatic representation 
abroad, of necessity little else than Prus- 
sian ; and to Prussia also was entrusted 
the management of the posts and tele- 
graphs in the Confederation. 

The southern German states which 
up to this point had not joined the Bund 
were Bavaria, Baden, Wurtemberg, 
Hesse-Darmstadt and Liechtenstein, 
with a joint area of 43,990 square miles, 
and a total population of 8,524,460. 
But, though these states were not form- 
ally members of the Bund, they were 
so practically, for they were bound to 
Prussia by treaties of alliance offensive 
and defensive, so that in the event of a 
war the king of Prussia would have at 
his disposal an armed force of upwards 
of 1,100,000 men. 

During the next few years the North 
German Confederation was employed in 



consolidating and stiengthening itself, 
and in trying to induce the southern 
states to join the league. The commer- 
cial union was remodeled and extended, 
until by the year 1868 every part of 
Germany was a member of it, with the 
exception of the cities of Hamburg and 
Bremen, and a small part of Baden, 
This paved the way for the formal en- 
trance of the southern states into the 
confederation ; but they still hung back, 
though the ideal of a united Germany 
was gradually growing in force and 

favor. 

Impending War. 

In the spring of 1 867 a war between 
Prussia and France seemed imminent, 
from difficulties arising out of the occu- 
pation of Luxemburg by the former ; 
but by the good offices of the British 
government a congress of the great 
powers, Italy included, was assembled 
in London, at which an arrangement 
satisfactory to both nations was amica- 
bly agreed upon, Luxemburg remaining 
in the possession of the king of Hol- 
land. It was evident, however, that 
hostilities had only been postponed, and 
on both sides extensive military prepa- 
rations were carried on. 

In 1870 the long-threatened war be- 
tween Prussia and France broke out. 
On July 4th of that year the provisional 
government of Spain elected Prince 
Leopold of Hohenzollern, a relative of 
King William of Prussia, to fill their 
vacant throne. This step gave the 
greatest umbrage to the French govern- 
ment ; and though, by the advice of 
William I. of Prussia, Prince Leopold 
resigned his candidature, it was not sat- 
isfied, but demanded an assurance that 
Prussia would at no future period sanc- 
tion his claims. 



m 



THE NEW GERMAN EMPIRE. 



This assurance the king refused to 
give; and on the 19th of July the em- 
peror of the French proclaimed war 
against Prussia. Contrary to the expec- 
tation of France, the southern German 
states at once decided to support Prus- 
sia and the northern states, and placed 
their armies, which were eventually 



Germans were splendidly organized, and 
much superior in number. The result 
was that the French, instead of march- 
ing to Berlin as they anticipated, never 
crossed the Rhine, and had to fight at a 
disadvantage in Alsace and Lorraine. 

On August 2d the French obtained 
some trifling success at Saarbruck, but 




THE BATTLE OF GRAVELOTTE. 



commanded by the Crown-prince of 
Prussia, at the disposal of King Wil- 
liam. 

By the end of July the forces of both 
countries were congregated on the fron- 
tier Napoleon, however, lost a fort- 
night in delays after the declaration of 
war, and it was discovered that the 
French army was by no means in a state 
of satisfactory preparation, while the 



the rapidly following battles of Weis- 
senburg, August 4th, Worth and Spic- 
heren, both August 6th, were important 
German victories. The German ad- 
vance was hardly checked for a moment, 
though the losses on both sides were 
very heavy. The battle of Gravelotte, 
in which King William commanded in 
person, was fought on the i8th ; and 
though the Germans suffered immense 



THE NEW GERMAN EMPIRE. 



161 



loss, they were again victorious, and 
forced Bazaine to shut himself up in 
Metz. 

The Emperor Napoleon and Marshal 
MacMahon in vain attempted to proceed 
to the relief of Bazaine. They were 
surrounded at Sedan, and completely 
defeated with heavy loss. The emperor 
surrendered on the 2d of September, 
with his whole army, about 90,000 men, 
and was sent as a prisoner into Ger- 
many. By the 19th of September the 
Prussians had reached Paris, and com- 
menced a vigorous siege. Strasburg 
capitulated on the 27th after a severe 
bombardment ; and on October 28th 
Bazaine surrendered Metz with an army 
of 6000 officers and 173,000 men, 400 
pieces of artillery, 100 mitrailleuses and 
53 eagles. Verdun capitulated on the 
8th of November ; Thionville followed 
on the 24tli ; after which there were 
several capitulations of lesser import- 
ance. 

Succession of Defeats. 

The French made extraordinary ef- 
forts to raise armies and relieve Paris, 
but with the exception of a momentary 
gleam of success on the lyoire, they met 
with nothing but severe defeats. Of 
these may be mentioned the battle of 
December 3d in the Forest of Orleans, 
and that of Le Mans, January 12th, in 
which contests Prince Frederick-Charles 
took altogether 30,000 prisoners. 

After numerous unsuccessful sorties, 
and enduring great sufferings from fam- 
ine, Paris surrendered on the 29th of 
January, and the war was virtually at 
an end. The French army of the East, 
80,000 strong, under Bourbaki, was 
compelled to retire to Switzerland on 
the 31st. By the peace of Frankfort, 



May 10, 1 87 1, France was condemnec^ 
to pay a heavy war indemnity, and the 
province of Alsace, along with the 
German part of L<orraine, was ceded to 
Germany. 

A very important result of the wai 
was to complete the fusion of the north- 
ern and southern states of Germany. 
The southern states joined at once ir 
the war against France ; in November 
of 1870, Baden and Hesse leading the 
way, they all became members of the 
German Confederation; and next month 
the re-establishment of the German em- 
pire was almost unanimously resolved, 
with the king of Prussia as hereditary 
emperor. It was at Versailles, on the 
1 8th of January, 1871, that the king was 
proclaimed emperor of Germany. 

Empire of Prussia. 

The new Germaii empire set vigor- 
ously to work to organize itself as a 
united federation, under the skillful 
leadership of Prince Bismarck, who was 
appointed Reichskanzler or Imperial 
Chancellor. Almost at once it found 
itself involved in the ecclesiastical con- 
test with the Church of Rome, known 
as the " Kulturkampf, " which had pre- 
viously begun in Prussia. The origin 
of the struggle was an effort to vindi- 
cate the right of the state to interfere, 
somewhat intimately, with the behavior, 
appointments, and even educational 
affairs of all religious societies in the 
country. 

The Jesuits were expelled in 1872, 
and Pope Pius IX. retorted by declining 
to receive the German ambassador. The 
famous Falk or May Laws were passed 
in Prussia in 1873-4-5, and some of 
their provisions were extended to the 
empire. Several German prelates, re- 



£70 



THE NBW GEJlMAN HMPIfiB. 



fusing obedience, were expelled from 
Germany ; and the disorganization in 
ecclesiastical affairs became so serious 
that the Reichstag passed a law in 1874 
making marriage a civil rite. The 
Pope issued an encyclical declaring the 
Falk laws invalid, and matters seemed 
for a time to be at a deadlock. 

Prussia and the Papacy. 

On the election of a new pope, Leo 
XIII., in 1878, attempts were made to 
arrange a compromise between the em- 
pire and the papal see. Falk, the Prus- 
sian " Kultus "-minister, resigned in 
1879, and certain modifications were 
made in the obnoxious laws in 1881 and 
1883. Bismarck took a further step to- 
wards Canossa in 1885, when he pro- 
posed the pope as arbiter between Ger- 
many and Spain in the dispute as to 
the possession of the Caroline Islands ; 
and he practically owned himself beaten 
in the concession which he granted in 
revisions of the politico-ecclesiastical 
legislation in 1886 and 1887. Another 
semi-religious difficulty which deman- 
ded government interference was the 
social persecution of the Jews, which 
reached a climax in 1880-81. 

In more strictly political affairs the 
rapid spread of socialism excited the 
alarm of the government. Two at- 
tempts on the life of the emperor, in 
May and June, 1878, were attributed 
more or less directly to the Social Demo- 
crat organization, and gave the signal 
for legislative measures, conferring very 
extensive powers upon the administra- 
tion to be used in suppressing the influ- 
ence of socialism. These socialist laws, 
though limited in duration, have in- 
/ariably been renewed (sometimes with 
added stringency) before their validity 



expired ; in 1889 several of the most 
important towns of the empire were in 
what is called "the minor state of siege" 
for police purposes, and a new per- 
manent socialist law was proposed by 
the government in October of that year. 
A plot, happily futile, to blow up the 
emperor and other German rulers at the 
inauguration of the National Monument 
in the Niederwald in 1883 was consid- 
ered by the government to justify its 
repressive measures. Prince Bismarck, 
however, was not content with repressive 
measures ; he endeavored by improving 
the condition of the working-classes to 
cut the ground from beneath the feet of 
the socialistic propagandists. 

Laws for the Working-Glasses. 

The acknowledgment in the empe- 
ror's message to the Reichstag, in 1881, 
that the working-classes have a right to 
be considered by the state, was followed 
by laws compelling employers to insu ■ - 
their workmen in case of sickness and 
of accident, and by the introduction, 
1 888, of compulsory insurance for work- 
men against death and old age — meas- 
ures that have been by some called 
" state-socialism." 

The energetic commercial policy of 
government also, which since 1 879 has 
been strongly protectionist, had its 
springs in similar considerations; and 
the colonial policy, which began in 
1884 with the acquisition of Angra Pe- 
quena, may be considered to be stimu- 
lated partly by the desire to gratify the 
national self-respect, and partly to pro- 
vide new outlets under the German flag 
for the surplus population, and new 
markets for the home manufactures. 

None of the German colonies as yet, 
however, either in Africa or the Pacific 



THE NEW GERMAN EMPIRE. 



1?1 



Ocean, have proved of any great com- 
mercial value. The assembling of the 
Congo Congress at Berlin, in 1885, fitly 
marked Germany's admission to the list 
of colonial powers. On the mainten- 
ance and improvement of the army and 
navy the German government has be- 
stowed the most unremitting care, urged 
especially by the attitude of the "Re- 
vanche " party in France, though hith- 
erto the imperial policy has been en- 
tirely pacific. 

The National Army. 

Considerable parliamentary friction 
has been caused more than once by tne 
unwillingness of the Reichstag to vote 
military supplies to the amount and in 
the manner demanded. The national 
parliament seeks to exercise a constitu- 
tional control over the army. A com- 
promise was efiected in 1874, in virtue 
of which the military strength was fixed 
and the supplies granted for periods of 
seven years at a time. In 1886 the gov- 
ernment proposed to terminate the cur- 
rent Septennate in 1887 instead of 1888, 
and to immediately add largely to the 
peace strength of the army. 

On the rejection of the bill the Reich- 
stag was dissolved January, 1887, by the 
emperor, and an appeal made to the 
country. The Iron Chancellor, Bis- 
marck, still possessed the confidence 
and the gratitude of the people, and the 
new elections in February, 1887, re- 
sulted in a crushing defeat for the op- 
ponents of the government, notably the 
Freisinnige and the Social Democrats. 
One of the most remarkable features of 
this election was a letter written by the 
Pope in favor of the army bill, for which 
he subsequently received a quid pro quo 
«n a further modification of the May 



laws. The Military Septennate Bill was 
immediately passed, and was followed 
in 1888 by a Military Organization Bill 
which made several changes in the con- 
ditions of service in the landwehr. The 
subsequent budgets showed aii enorm- 
ous increase in the extraordinary mili- 
tary expenditure. While thus seeking 
peace by preparing for war, Germany 
had not failed to use diplomacy for the 
same end. 

A personal meeting of the emperors 
of Germany, Austria and Russia, in 
1872, was considered a proof of apo- 
litical alliance, and, when Russia drifted 
somewhat apart from Germany in 1878, 
an offensive and defensive alliance was 
formed between Austria and Germany in 
1 879. Italy afterwards entered this Triple 
Alliance. Germany's influence on the 
Eastern Question was recognized in 
1878, when the plenipotentiaries of the 
powers met at the Congress of Berlin. 

A New Emperor. 

On the 9th of March, 1 888, the Emperor 
William I. died. His son Frederick, at 
that time suffering from a cancerous 
affection of the throat, immediately 
issued a proclamation, in which he 
promised to consider ' ' new and un- 
questionable national needs," and it 
was understood, and to some extent felt 
that a more liberal era had commenced. 
The new emperor, however, died on 
June 15 th, and William II., his son, who 
succeeded, at once recurred to the pol- 
icy of William I. and Prince Bismarck. 
Much painful excitement was caused by 
a medical dispute as to the nature and 
cause of the late emperor's fatal ilhiess, 
which speedily developed into a party 
question, discussed on both sides with 
virulent acrimony. The latter part of 



172 



THE NEW GERMAN EMPIRE. 



1888 and the year 1889, were devoted by 
the young emperor to visiting the courts 
of several of his fellow-sovereigns in 
Europe. Germany continued to extend 
her colonial empire, not, however, with- 
out coming to blows with the natives ; 
and in Samoa became temporarily in- 
volved in hostilities with one of the 
chiefs. Difficulties on the east coast of 
Africa led in 1888 to a blockade by the 
British and German fleets to prevent 
the importation of arms and to check 
the slave-trade. This lasted until Oc- 
tober, 1889. 

Prince Bismarck and his sons, Her- 
bert and William, resigned their posi- 
tions under the government, March 17, 
1890, and two days later. Von Caprivi 
was appointed as Bismarck's successor. 
Early in July, 1891, Emperor William 
visited London, received the "freedom 
of the city," and was given an enthu- 
siastic reception, which was intended 
to strengthen the bonds of peace and 
good-will already existing between Ger- 
many and England. 

Prince Bismarck died on the 30th of 



July, 1898. For nearly half a ctnctir) 
his name was associated with German 
statesmanship, and to him, more than 
to all the other statesmen combined, 
was due the unity of the German Em- 
pire. He was the leading spirit in 
all the latest events affecting the nation, 
and was one of the gieat commanding 
figures in European diplomacy. A man 
of giant intellect, wide and varied at- 
tainments and indomitable will, he was 
possessed of all the elements for suc- 
cessful leadership, and the impress of 
his strong hand remains upon the Ger- 
man Empire. 

Difficulties having arisen in 1899 
with England and the United States 
respecting the Samoan Islands in the 
South Pacific, commissioners were ap- 
pointed by the three powers to investi- 
gate the rights of each, and present a 
report for the purpose of obtaining a 
basis for a permanent settlement of the 
claims of the respective powers. It was 
understood that a proposition to parti- 
tion the islands was the one most likely 
to be adopted. 



CHAPTER XII. 

Great Events in the History of Russia. 



/CONSIDERING the repeated at- 
f ^ tempts on the lives of Russian 
vHs^^ emperors in the latter part of 
the nineteenth century, it is 
wdfthy^of note that its beginning was 
marked by a royal assassination. The 
Emperor Paul was murdered March 24, 
1 80 1, and was succeeded by his eldest 
son, Alexander I. One of the first acts 
of the new emperor was to make peace 
with England and France. He, how- 
ever, soon changed his policy, and in 
1805 joined the third coalition against 
France, to which Austria and England 
were parties. Events which belong to 
general European history, and are well 
known, need only to be described briefly 

here. 

On December 2nd of that year took 
place the battle of Austerlitz, in which 
the Russians lost more than 20,000 men 
and many guns and flags. They accused 
their Austrian allies of treachery. The 
war was soon ended by the treaty of 
Pressburg. 

Then occurred the fourth coalition 
against France. In 180; Napoleon en- 
gaged the Russian general Benningsen 
at Eylau. The battle was protracted 
and sanguinary, but not decisive. Both 
parties abandoned the field and retired 
into winter quarters. Next followed 
the memorable peace of Tilsit. By 
this treaty the Prussian king, Fred- 
erick William III., lost half his domin- 
Nearly all his Polish possessions 



ions. 



were to go to the King of Saxony under 
the name of the Grand Duchy of War- 
saw. 

By a secret treaty, it seemea as if 



Alexander and Napoleon almost aspired 
to divide the world, or at least Europe, 
between them. The terms, howevei; 
were received by a large party in Rus 
sia with disgust. The next important 
event in the reign of Alexander was the 
conquest of Finland. By a treaty in 
September, 1809, Sweden surrendered 
Finland, with the whole of East Both- 
nia, and a part of West Bothnia, lying 
eastward of the river Tornea. The Fins 
were allowed a kind of autonomy which 
they have preserved to this day. 

The annexation of Georgia to Russia 
was consolidated at the beginning of 
this reign, having been long in prepar- 
ation. It led to a war with Persia, 
which resulted in the incorporation of 
the Province of Shirvan with the Rus- 
sian empire in 1806. 

The Coming Struggle. 
In 1809 commenced the fifth coalition 
against Napoleon. Alexander, who was 
obliged by treaty to furnish assistance 
to the French emperor, did all that he 
could to prevent the war. A quarrel 
with Turkey led to its invasion by a 
Russian army. This war was termi- 
nated in 1 812. Russia gave up Molda- 
via and Wallachia, which she had occu- 
pied, but kept Bessarabia, with the 
fortress of Khotin and Bender. 

Gradually an estrangement took place 

between Alexander and Napoleon, not 

only on account of the creation of th<„ 

Grand Duchy of Warsaw, but because 

Russia was suffering greatly from the 

, Continental blockade, to which Alex- 

I ander had been forced to 'jive his adhe- 

.^.. - 173 



174 



GREAT EVENTS IN RUSSIA. 



sion. This led to the great iuvasion 
of Russia by Napoleon in 1812. 

On May 9, 1812, Napoleon left Paris 
for Dresden, and the Russian and French 



the Niemen and advanced by forced 
marches to Smolensk. Here he d^. 
feated the Russians, and again at the 
terrible battle of Borodino, and then 




THE RUSSIAN FLEET 

Ambassadors received their passports. 
The grand army comprised 678,000 
men, 356,000 of them being French; 
and. to oppose them, the Russians as- 
.,«mbled 372,000 men. Napoleon crossed 



UNDER PL IT SMTv. 
entered Moscow, which had been aban- 
doned by most of the inhabitants ; soon 
afterwards a fire broke out (probably 
caused by the order of Rostopchin, the 
governor), which raged six da)^ and 



GREAT EVENTS IN JIUSSIA. 



175 



which destroyed the greater part of the 
city. 

Notwithstanding this disaster, Napo- 
leon lingered five weeks among the 
ruins, endeavoring to negotiate a peace, 
which he seemed to think Alexander 
would be sure to grant; but he had 
mistaken the spirit of the Emperor and 
his people. On the i8th of October 
Napoleon reluctantly commenced his 
backward march. The weather was 
unusually severe, and the country all 
round had been devastated by the 
French on their march. With their 
ranks continually thinned by cold, 
hunger, and the skirmishes of the Cos- 
sacks who hung upon their rear, the 
French reached the Beresina, which 
they crossed near Studianka on the 
26th-29th of November with great loss. 

The struggle on the banks of this 
river forms one of the most terrible 
pictures in history. At Smorgoni, be- 
tween Vilna and Minsk, Napoleon left 
the army and hurried to Paris. Finally 
the wreck of the grand armee under 
Ney crossed the Niemen. Not more 
than 80,000 of the whole army are said 
o have returned. 

A Powerful Alliance. 

Frederick William III. of Prussia 
now issued a manifesto, and concluded 
an alliance with Russia for the re- 
establishment of the Prussian mon- 
archy- In 18 1 3 took place the battle 
of Dresden, and the so-called Battle of 
the Nations at Leipsic on October 16 
and the two following days. In 18 14 
the Russians invaded France with the 
allies, and lost many men in the as- 
sault upon Paris. After the battle of 
\Vaterloo, and the conveyance of Napo- 
leon to the island of 8t. Helena, it fell | 



to the Russian forces to occupy Cham- 
pagne and Iy6rraine. 

In the same year Poland was re- 
established in a mutilated form, with a 
constitution which Alexander, who was 
crowned king, swore to observe. In 
1825 the emperor died suddenly at 
Taganrog at the mouth of the Do^-, 
while visiting the southern provinces 
of his empire. He had added to the 
Russian dominions Finland, Poland, 
Bessarabia, and that part of the Cau- 
casus which includes Daghestan, Shir- 
van, Mingrelia, and Imeretia. Much 
was done in this reign to improve the 
condition of the serfs. The Raskolniks 
were better treated ; many efforts were 
made to improve public education, and 
the universities of Kazan, Kharkofl, 
and St. Petersburg were founded. 

Charged with Treason. 

One of the chief agents of these re- 
forms was the minister Speranski, who 
for some time enjoyed the favor of the 
emperor, but he attacked so many in- 
terests by his measures that a coalition 
was formed against him. He was de- 
nounced as a traitor, and his enemies 
succeeded in getting him removed and 
sent as governor to Nijni-Novgorod. 
In 1 8 19, when the storm raised against 
him had somewhat abated, he was ap- 
pointed to the important post of gov- 
ernor of Siberia. In 1821 he returned 
to St. Petersburg, but he never regained 
his former power. 

To the mild influence of Speranski 
succeeded that of Shishkoff, Novosilt- 
zeff, and Arakcheeff. The last of these 
men made himself universally detested 
in Russia. He rose to great influence 
in the time of Paul, and managed to 
continue in favor under his son. Be* 



178 



GREAT E%^NTS IN RUSSIA. 



sides tnany other pernicious measures, 
it was to him that Russia owed the 
ailitary colonies which were so un- 
popular and led to serious riots. The 
censorship of the press became much 
stricter, and many professors of liberal 
cendencies were dismissed from their 
chairs in the universities. 

The country was now filled with 
secret societies, and the emperer be- 
came gloomy and suspicious. In this 
condition of mind he died, a man 
thoroughly disenchanted and weary of 
life. He has been judged harshly by 
some authors ; readers will remember 
that Napoleon said of him that he was 
false as a Byzantine Greek. To us he 
appears as a well-intentioned man, ut- 
terly unable to cope with the discord- 
ant elements around him. He had 
discovered that his life was a failure. 

A New Conspiracy. 

The heir to the throne according to 
the principles of succession recognized 
in Russia was Constantine. the second 
son of the emperor Paul, since Alexan- 
der left no children. But he had of his 
own free will secretly renounced his 
claim in 1822, having espoused a 
Roman Catholic, the Polish princess 
Julia Grudzinska. In consequence of 
this change in the sovereign's authority, 
the conspiracy of the Dekabists broke 
out at the end of the year, their object 
being to take advantage of the con- 
fusion caused by the alteration of the 
succession to get constitutional govern- 
ment in Russia. Their efforts failed, 
but the rebellion was not put down 
without great bloodshed. 

Five of the conspirators were exe- 
cuted, and a great many sent to Siberia. 
Some of tlie men implicated were 



among the most remarkable of theit 
time in Russia, but the whole country 
had been long honeycombed with secret 
societies, and many of the Russian 
officers had learned liberal ideas while 
engaged in the campaign against Napo- 
leon. So ignorant, however, were the 
common people of the most ordinary 
political terms that when told to shout 
for Constantine and the constitution 
they naively asked if the latter was 
Constantine' s wife. 

Victorious Over Persia. 

The new emperor, Nicholas, the next 
brother in succession, showed through- 
out his reign reactionary tendencies ; 
all liberalism was sternly repressed. In 
1830 appeared the "Complete Collec- 
tion of the Laws of the Russian Em- 
pire," which Nicholas had caused to be 
codified. He partly restored the right 
of primogeniture which had been taken 
away by the empress Anna as contrary 
to Russian usages, allowing a father to 
iriake his eldest son his sole heir. In 
spite of the increased severity of the 
censorship of the press, literature made 
great progress in his reign. From 1826 
to 1828 Nicholas was engaged in a war 
with Persia, in which the Russians 
were completely victorious, having 
beaten the enemy at Elizabetpol, and 
again under Paskewitch at Javan Bulak, 
The war was terminated by the peace 
of Turkmantchai, February 22, 1828, 
by which Persia ceded to Russia the 
provinces of Erivan and Nakhitchevan, 
and paid twenty millions of roubles as 
an indemnity. 

The next foreign enemy was Turkey. 
Nicholas had sympathized with the 
Greeks m their struggle for independ- 
ence, in opposition to tliie policy of 



GREAT EVENTS IN RUSSIA. 



177 



Alexander ; he had also a part to play 
as protector of the Orthodox Christians, 
who formed a large number of the 
sultan's subjects. In consequence of 
the sanguinary war which the Turks 
were carrying on against the Greeks 
and the utter collapse of the latter, 
Kngland, France, and Russia signed 
the treaty of London in 1827, by which 
Aey forced themselves upon the bel- 
ligerents as mediators. 

Turkish Fleet Destroyed. 

From this union resulted the battle 
of Navarino, October 20, 1827, in which 
the Turkish fleet was annihilated by 
that of the allies. Nicholas now pur- 
sued the war with Turkey on his own 
account ; in Asia Paskewitch defeated 
two Turkish armies, and conquered 
Brzeroum, and in Europe Diebitsch de- 
feated the grand vizier. The Russians 
crossed the Balkans and advanced to 
Adrianople, where a treaty was signed 
in 1829 very disadvantageous to Tur- 
key. 

In 1 83 1 broke out the Polish insur- 
rection. Paskewitch took Warsaw in 
1 83 1. The cholera which was then 
raging had already carried off Diebitsch 
and the Grand Duke Constantine. Po- 
land was now entirely at the mercy of 
Nicholas. The constitution which had 
been granted by Alexander was an- 
nulled ; there were to be no more diets ; 
and for th*^ ancient palatinates, familiar 
to the historical student, were substi- 
tuted the governments of Warsaw, 
Radom, Lublin, Plock, and Modlin. 
The university of Vilna, rendered cele- 
brated by Mickiewicz and Lelewel, was 
suppressed. 

By another treaty with Turkey, that 
oi Unkiar-Skelessi, 1833, Russia ac- 
12 



quired additional rights to meddle with 
the internal politics of that country. 
Soon after the revolution of 1848, the 
Emperor Nicholas, who became even 
more reactionary in consequence of the 
disturbed state of Europe, answered the 
appeal of the Emperor Francis Joseph, 1 
and sent an army under Paskewitch to 
suppress the Hungarian revolt. After 
the capitulation of Gorgei in 1849, the 
war was at an end, and the Magyars 
cruelly expiated their attempts to pro- 
cure constitutional government. 

In 1853 broke out the Crimean War. 
The emperor was anxious to distribute 
the possessions of the " sick man," but 
found enemies instead of allies in Eng- 
land and France. The chief events of 
this memorable struggle were the bat- 
tles of the Alma, Balaklava, Inker- 
mann, and Tchernaya, and the siege of 
Sebastopol; this had been skillfully for- 
tified by Todleben, who appears to have 
been the only man of genius who came 
to the front on either side during the 
war. In 1855 the Russians destroyed 
the southern side of the city, and re- 
treated to the northern. 

The War Ended. 

In the same year, on March r4th, died 
the emperor Nicholas, after a short ill- 
ness. Finding all his plans frustrated 
he had grown weary of life, and rashly 
exposed himself to the severe tempera- 
ture of the northern spring. He was 
succeeded by his son Alexander II., 
1855-1881, at the age of thirty-seven. 
One of the first objects of the new czai 
was to put an end to the war, and the 
treaty of Paris was signed in 1856, by 
which Russia consented to keep no 
vessels of war in the Black Sea, and to 
give up her protectorate of the Eastern 



178 



GREAT EVENTS IN RUSSIA. 



Christians; the former, it must be 
added, she has afterward recovered. 

A portion of Russian Bessarabia was 
also cut off and added to the Danubian 
principalities, which were shortly to be 
united under the name of Roumania. 
This was afterwards given back to 
Russia by the treaty of Berlin. Sebas- 



out by his son. The landlords, on re 
ceiving an indemnity, now released the 
serfs from their seigniorial rights, and 
the village commune became the actual 
property of the serf. This great revo- 
lution was not, however, carried out 
without great difficulty. 

The Polish insurrection of 1863 was 




SEBASTOPOIv DURING THE BOMBARDMENT. 



topol also has been rebuilt, so that it is 
difficult to see what the practical re- 
sults of the Crimean War were, in spite 
of the vast bloodshed and expenditure 
of treasure which attended it. 

The next important measure was the 
emancipation of the serfs in 1861. This 
great reform had long been meditated 
by Nicholas, but he was unable to ac- 
complish it, and left it to be carried 



a great misfortune to that part of Poland 
which had been incorporated with Rus- 
sia. On the other hand Finland had 
seen her privileges confirmed. 

Among important foreign events oi 
this reign must be mentioned the cap- 
ture of Schamyl in 1859 by Prince 
Bariatinski, and the pacification of the 
Caucasus ; many of the Circassians, un- 
able to endure the peaceful life of cul- 



GREAT EVENTS IN RUSSIA. 



nn 



tivators oi the soil under, the new 
regime, migrated to Turkey, where 
they have formed one of the most 
turbulent elements of the population. 
Turkestan also has been gradually sub- 
jugated. In 1865 the city of Tashkend 
was taken, and in 1867 Alexander II. 
created the government of Turkestan. 
In 1858 General Muravieff signed a 
treaty with the Chinese, by which 
Russia acquired all the left bank of the 
river Amur. A new port has been 
created in Eastern Asia (Vladivostok), 
which promises to be a great centre of 
trade. 

A Terrible Siege. 

In 1877 Russia came to the assistance 
of the Slavonic Christians against the 
Turks. After the terrible siege of 
Plevna, nothing stood between them 
and the gates of Constantinople. In 
1878 the treaty of San Stefano was 
signed, by which Roumania became 
independent, Servia was enlarged, and 
a free Bulgaria, but under Turkish 
snzerainty, was created. But these 
arrangements were subsequently modi- 
fied by the treaty of Berlin. Russia 
,9-ot back the portion of Bessarabia 
which she had lost, and advanced her 
Caucasian frontier. 

The new province of Bulgaria was 
cut into two, the southern portion being 
entitled Eastern Roumelia, with a 
Christian governor, to be appointed by 
the Porte, and self-government. Austria 
acquired a protectorate ovei Bosnia and 
Herzegovina. The latter part of the 
reign of Alexander II. was a period of 
great internal commotion, on account 
of the spread of Nihilism, and the at- 
tempts upon the emperor's life, which 
unfortunately were at last successful. 



In the cities in which his despotic 
father had walked about fearless, with- 
out a single attendant, the mild and 
amiable Alexander was in daily peril of 
his life. 

On April 16, 1866, Karakozoflf shot 
at the emperor in St. Petersburg ; in 
the following year another attempt was 
made by a Pole, Berezowski, while 
Alexander was at Paris on a visit to 
Napoleon III. ; on April 14, 1879, Solo- 
viofiF shot at him. The same year saw 
the attempt to blow up the Winter 
Palace and to wreck the train by which 
the czar was traveling from Moscow tc 
St. Petersburg. A similar conspiracy 
in 1 88 1, March 13, was successful. Five 
of the conspirators, including a womai., 
Sophia Perovskaia, were publicly exe- 
cuted. 

Plots and Murders 

Thus terminated the reign of Alex- 
der II., which had lasted nearly twenty- 
six years. He died leaving Russia 
exhausted by foreign wars and honey- 
combed by plots. His wife and eldesi 
son Nicholas had died before him, th 
latter at Nice. He was succeeded b 
his second son Alexander, born in 1845^ 
whose reign has been characterized by 
conspiracies and constant deportations 
of suspected persons. It was long be- 
fore he ventured to be crowned in his 
ancient capital of Moscow, in 1883, and 
the chief event since then has beeo the 
disturbed relations with England, which 
for a time threatened war. 

An incident of peaceful significance 
was the visit of the emperor of Gei- 
many to the czar at Peterhof, July 19- 
23, 1888. On the 27th of the sam^^^ 
month the ninth centenary of the in 
troduction of Christianity was cele 



180 



GREAT EVENTS 5N RUSSIA. 



brated at KiefF. The government being 
embarrassed on account of the low state 
of its treasury, signed an agreement for 
a loan of $100,000,000 in November of 
this year ; the loan was immediately 
taken, chiefly by French capitalists. 
Shortly afterward a loan of 700,000,000 
francs was concluded with the Roths- 
childs and other bankers. 

The autumn of 1891 was a period of 
great distress throughout a considerable 
part of Russia on account of the failure 
of the harvests. In some localities the 
entire population were reduced to tlie 
verge of starvation, and many persons 
actually perished from hunger. Meas- 
ures of relief were organized by the 
government, and large importations of 
^rain from the United States mitigated 
in some degree the severity of the 
calamity. 

Very unfavorable comment by other 
nations was made upon the action of 
the Russian government, resulting in 
oppressive measures against the Jews. 
The effect of this proscription was 
severely felt, and was the cause of great 
hardship and suffering. Those of the 
Jewish population who were able to 
emigrate sought refuge elsewhere. 

The year 1899 was characterized by 
an important conference in Holland of 
commissioners appointed by the great 



powers of Europe and by the United 
States, for the purpose of acting upon 
a proposition by the Czar of Russia for 
disarming the nations and ending wai. 
Great interest attended the Emperor's 
efforts to secure perpetual peace, and it 
was generally conceded that an import- 
ant step had been taken in that direction. 

The deliberations of the conference 
were long and earnest, and one of the 
results was the formulation of articles 
of arbitration which pointed out the 
methods of procedure between the na- 
tionr in the settlement of disputes. It 
was considered a sarcastic commentary 
upon this well-meant attempt to abolish 
war that the struggle between the Eng- 
lish and the South African Republics 
should have followed so quickly. It waf 
evident that the time was not yet ripi 
for fully inaugurating the principle oi 
arbitratioUo 

A moral result, however, was gained 
by the great nations assembling in con- 
vention to discuss the question of dis- 
armament and to promote a general 
peace. This is the highest point gained 
in the efforts of the world's philanthro- 
pists, statesmen and rulers, to disband 
their armies and silence the thunder-roar 
of war. So much at least was gained, 
and perhaps more, that will be manifest 
in the near future. 



CHAPTER XIII. 
Nations of Northern Europe — Denmark, Sweden and Norway. 




N account of the mental de- 
rangement of his father, Prince 
Frederick VI. was declared re- 
gent of Denmark in 1784, and 
at the beginning of the century was the 
acting ruler, the sovereign in every 
thing except the name. He soon 
proved his capacity to govern by pass- 
ing several judicious enactments. 

The peasants living on the crown 
lands were gradually emancipated — an 
example followed by a number of the 
nobility on their respective estates. In 
the abolition of the African slave trade 
Denmark had the honor of taking the 
lead among the governments of Europe. 
The crown prince, guided by the 
counsels of Count Bernstorff, long re- 
mained neutral in the political convul- 
sion engendered by the French Revolu- 
tion. He continued to adhere stead- 
fastly to this plan until in 1801 the 
Emperor Paul of Russia having, as in 
the case of the Armed Neutrality, 
formed a compact of the northern 
powers hostile to England, a British 
fleet was sent into the Baltic under the 
orders of Sir Hyde Parker, with Lord 
Nelson as his second in command. 

It was this fleet which taught the 
Danes that their capital was not im- 
pregnable, and that the long line of 
men-of-war moored in front of the har- 
bor was an insufiicient defence against 
such enterprising opponents. The at- 
tack took place on the 2d of April, 1801 ; 
and the resistance of the Danes was 
spirited, but fruitless. The loss of the 
English in killed and wounded exceeded 
Jiooo men, but that of their opponents 



was much greater, and most of theii 
shipping was destroyed. Happily little 
injury was done to the capital. A cessa- 
tion of hostilities took place forthwith, 
and was followed by a treaty of peace. 
The death of Paul, which occurred 
soon afterwards, dissolved the compact 
between the northern courts. 

But no treaty of peace could be re- 
garded as permanent during the ascend- 
ancy of Napoleon. After defeating first 
Austria and then Prussia, that extra- 
ordinary man found means to obtain 
the confidence of the Emperor Alexan 
der of Russia, and in the autumn of 
1807 threatened to make Denmark take 
part in the war against England. Al- 
though the Danish Government dis- 
covered no intention to violate its 
neutrality, the English Ministers, eagej 
to please the public by acting on a sys- 
tem of vigor, despatched to the Baltic 
both a fleet and an army, in order to 
compel the surrender of the Danish 
navy, upon condition of its being re- 
t ored in the event of peace. 

The Fleet Surrenders. 

To such a demand the crown prince 
gave an immediate negative, declaring 
that he was both able and willing to 
maintain his neutrality, and that his 
fleet could not be given up on any such 
condition. On this the English army « 
landed near Copenhagen, laid siege to 
that city, and soon obliged the govern- 
ment to purchase its safety by surren- 
dering the whole of its naval force. 

This act, the most questionable in 
point of justice of any committed by 

181 



182 



DENMARK, SWKDEN AND NORWAY. 



the British Government during the 
war, can hardly be defended on the 
score of policy. The resentment felt 
on the occasion by the Emperor of 
Russia was so great as to deprive Eng- 
land during four arduous years of the 
benefit of his alliance ; and the seizure 
of the Danish fleet so exasperated the 
crown prince and the nation at large, 
that they forthwith declared war against 
England, throwing themselves com- 
pletely into the arms of France. 

The hostilities between England and 
Denmark were carried on by sea, partly 
at the entrance of the Baltic, and partly 
on the coast of Norway. These con- 
sisted of a series of actions between 
single vessels or small detachments, in 
which the Danes fought always with 
spirit, and not infrequently with suc- 
cess. In regard to trade, both nations 
suffered severely — the British merchant- 
aen in tb e Baltic being much annoyed 
by Danish cruisers, whilst the foreign 
trade of Denmark was in a manner 
suspended, through the naval superior- 
ity of England. 

Norway Ceded to Sweden. 

The situation of the two countries 
;ontinued on the same footing during 
^ve years, when at last the overthrow 
of Bonaparte in Russia opened a hope 
of deliverance to those who were in- 
voluntarily his allies. The Danish 
Government would now gladly have 
made peace with England; but the lat- 
ter, in order to secure the cordial co- 
operation of Russia and Sweden, had 
gone so far as to guarantee to these 
powers the cession of Norway on the 
•^art of Denmark. 

The Danes, ill prepared for so great 
a sacrifice, continued their connection 



with France during the eventful yeat 
1 8 1 3 ; but at the close of that campaign 
a superior force was directed by the 
allied sovereigns against Holstein, and 
the result was. first an armistice, and 
eventually a treaty of peace in Januarys 
1 8 14. The terms of the peace were, 
that Denmark should cede Norway tc 
Sweden, and that Sweden, in return 
should give up Pomerania to Denmark 
But Pomerania, being too distant to 
form a suitable appendage to the Danish 
territory, was exchanged for a sum of 
money and a small district in Lauen- 
burg adjoining Holstein. On the part 
of England, the conquests made from 
Denmark in the East and West Indies 
were restored — all, in short, that had 
been occupied by British troops, ex- 
cepting Heligoland. 

The Monarchy in Danger. 

After the Congress of Vienna, by 
which the extent of the Danish mon- 
archy was considerably reduced, the 
court of Copenhagen was from time to 
time disquieted by a spirit of discontent 
manifesting itself in the duchies, and 
especially in that of Holstein, the out- 
break of which in 1848 threatened the 
monarchy with complete dissolution. 
A short recapitulation of the relation of 
the different parts of the kingdom to 
each other will furnish a key to the 
better comprehension of these internal 
troubles. 

When Christian I. of the house of 
Oldenburg ascended the throne of Den- 
mark in 1448, he was at the same time 
elected Duke of Schleswig and Hol- 
stein, while his younger brother re- 
ceived Oldenburg and Delmenhorst. 
In 1544 the older branch was again 
divided into two lines, that of the royal 




183 



184 



DENMARK, SWEDEN AND NORWAY. 



house of Denmark, and that of the 
dukes of Holstein-Gottorp. Several 
collateral branches arose afterwards, of 
which those that survived were — the 
Augustenburg and Glucksburg branches 
belong to the royal line, and the ducal 
Holstein-Gottorp branch, the head of 
which was Peter III. of Russia. 

The Danish Possessions. 

In 1762 Peter threatened Denmark 
with a war, the avowed object of which 
was the recovery of Schlesv/ig, which 
had been expressly guaranteed to the 
Danish Crown by England and France 
at the Peace of Stockholm, 1720. His 
sudden dethronement, however, pre- 
vented him from putting this design 
into execution. The Empress Cath- 
arine agreed to an accommodation, 
which was signed at Copenhagen in 
1764, and subsequently confirmed by 
the Emperor Paul, 1773, "by which the 
ducal part of Schleswig was ceded to 
the Crown of Denmark. The czar 
abandoned also his part of Holstein in 
exchange for Oldenburg and Delmon- 
horst, which he transferred to the 
younger branch of the Gottorp family. 
According to the scheme of Germanic 
organization adopted by the Congress 
of Vienna, the king of Denmark was 
declared member of the Germanic body 
on account of Holstein and Lauenburg, 
invested with three votes in the Gen- 
eral Assembly, and had a place, the 
tenth in rank, in the ordinary diet. 

After the restoration of peace in 
181 5, the States of the Duchy of Hol- 
stein, never so cordially blended with 
Denmark as those of Schleswig, began 
to show their discontent at the con- 
tinued non-convocation of their own 
assemblies despite the assurances of 



Frederick VI. The preparation of a 
new constitution for the whole king- 
dom was the main pretext by which the 
court evaded the claims of the petition- 
ers, who met, however, with no better 
success from the German diet, before 
which they brought their complaints in 
1822. 

After the stirring year of 1830, the 
movement in the duchies, soon to de- 
generate into a mutual animosity be- 
tween the Danish and German popula- 
tion, became more general. The scheme 
of the court to meet their demands by 
the establishment of separate delibera- 
tive assemblies for each of the provinces 
failed to satisfy the Holsteiners, who 
continually urged the revival of their 
long-neglected local laws and privileges. 
Nor were matters changed at the acces- 
sion in 1838 of Christian VIIL, a prince 
noted for his popular sympathies and 
liberal principles. 

Wide-Spread Rebellion. 

The feeling of national animosity was 
greatly increased by the issue of certain 
orders for Schleswig, which tended to 
encourage the culture of the Danish 
language to the prejudice of the Ger- 
man. The elements of a revolution 
being thus in readiness waited only for 
some impulse to break forth into ac- 
tion. Christian died in the very begin- 
ning of 1848, before the outbreak of 
the French Revolution in February, 
and left his throne to his son Frederick 
VII., who had scarcely received the 
royal unction when half of his subjects 
rose in rebellion against him. 

In March, 1848, Prince Frederick of 
Augustenburg, having gained over the 
garrison of Rendsburg, put himself at 
the head of a provincial government 



DENMARK, SWEDEN AND NORWAY. 



185 



proclaimed at Kiel. A Danish army, 
marching into Schleswig, easily re- 
duced the duchy as far as the banks of 
the Eider; but, in the meantime, the 
new national assembly of Germany 
resolved upon the incorporation of 
Schleswig; and the king of Prussia 
followed up their resolution by sending 
an army into the duchies under the 
command of General Wrangel. 

The Prussian general, after driving 
the Danes from Schleswig, marched 
into Jutland; but on the 26th of Au- 
gust an armistice was signed at Mal- 
moe, and an agreement come to by 
which the government of the duchies 
was entrusted to a commission of five 
members — two nominated by Prussia, 
two by Denmark, and the fifth by the 
common consent of the four, Denmark 
being also promised an indemnification 
for the requisitions made in Jr^Tand. 

War Goes On. 

After the expiration of the armistice, 
;he war was renewed with the aid of 
Prussian troops and other troops of the 
confederacy, from March to July, 1 849, 
when Prussia signed a second armistice 
for six months. The duchies now con- 
tinued to increase their own troops, be- 
ing determined to carry on the war at 
their own charge without the aid of 
Prussia, whose policy they stigmatized 
as inconsistent and treacherous. The 
chief command of the Schleswig-Hol- 
stein army was intrusted to General 
Willisen, a scientific and able soldier; 
but henceforth the Danes had little to 
fear, especially as the cry of German 
unity brought but an insignificant num- 
ber of volunteers to the camp of the 
Holsteiners. 

The last victory of the Danes, under 



Generals Krogh and Schlepegrell, was 
at the battle of Idsted, July 23rd. Near 
this small village, protected by Irkes 
and bogs, Willisen lay encamped with 
his centre, his right wing at Wed- 
eispung, extending along the Lake 
Langso, his left spreading along the 
Arnholtz lake. The Danes approach 
ing on the high road from Flensburg 
to Schleswig, attacked the enemy on all 
sides; and, after having been repeatedly 
repulsed, they succeeded in driving the 
Schleswig- Holsteiners from all their 
positions. The forces engaged on each 
side were about 30,000; the number of 
killed and wounded on both sides was 
upwards of 7,000. 

Peace with Prussia. 

After the victory of Idsted, the Danes 
could hardly expect to meet with any 
serious resistance, and the confidence o*^ 
the court of Copenhagen was further 
increased by the peace which was con- 
cluded with Prussia, July, 1850, by 
which the latter abandoned the duchies 
to their own fate, and soon afterwards 
aided in their subjection. The sole 
question of importance which now 
awaited its solution was the order of 
succession, which the European powers 
thought to be of such importance as to 
delay its final settlement till 18520 

The extinction of the male line in 
King Frederick was an event foreseen 
by the king, the people and the foreign 
powers. After protracted negotiations 
between the different courts, the repre- 
sentatives of England, France, Austria, 
Russia, Prussia and Sweden, a treaty 
relative to the succession was signed in 
London, May 8, 1852. According to 
this protocol, in case of default of male 
issue in the direct line of Frederick VI., 



186 



DENMARK, SV/EDEN AND NORWAY. 



the crown was to pass to Prince Chris- 
tian of Glucksburg, and his wife, the 
Princess Louisa, of Hesse, who, through 
her mother, Princess Charlotte of Den- 
mark, was the niece of King Christian 
VIIL 

The treaty of London did not fulfill 
the expectations of the signitaries as to 
a settlement of the agitation in the 
duchies. The duke of Augustenburg 
had accepted the pardon held out to him 
on condition that his family resigned all 
claim to the sovereignty. of the duchies, 
but he continued to stir up foreign na- 
tions about his rights, and when be died 
his son Frederick maintained the family 
pretensions. At last, in the autumn of 
1863, Frederick VII. died very suddenly 
at the castle of Glucksburg, in Schles- 
wig, the seat of his appointed successor. 
As soon as the ministry in Copenhagen 
received news of his death. Prince 
Christian of Glucksburg was proclaimed 
king as Christian IX., and the young 
duke of Augustenburg appeared in 
Schleswig, assuming tbe title of Fred- 
erick VIII 

Demands Upon Denmark. 

The claims of the pretender were 
supported by Prussia, Austria and other 
German states, and before the year was 
out Generals Gablenz and Wrangel oc- 
cupied the duchies in command of Aus- 
trian and Prussian troops. The attitude 
of Germany was in the highest degree 
peremptory, and Denmark was called 
upon to give up Schleswig-Holstein to 
military occupation by Prussia and Aus- 
tria until the claims of the duke of 
Augustenburg were settled. 

In its dilemma the Danish Govern- 
ment applied to England and to France, 
and receiving from these powers what 



I it rightly or wrongly considered as en- 
couragement, it declared war with Ger- 
many in the early part of 1864. The 
Danes sent their general, De Meza, with 
40,000 men to defend the Dannewerk, 
the ancient line of defences stretclii.ng 
right across the peninsula frorc the/ 
North Sea to the Baltic. The move-V 
ments of General De Meza were not 
however, successful ; the Dannewerk, 
popularly supposed to be impregnable 
was first outflanked and then stormec^., 
and the Danish army fell back on the 
heights of Dybbol, near Flensborg, 
which was strongly fortified, and took 
up a position behind it, across the Little 
Belt, in the island of Alsen, 

Heroic Courage. 

This defeat caused almost a panic in 
the country, and, finding that England 
and France had no intention of aiding 
them, the Danes felt the danger of anni- 
hilation close upon them. The courage 
of the little nation, however, was heroic, 
and they made a splendid stand against 
their countless opponents. General Ger- 
lach was sent to replace the unlucky De 
Meza ; the heights of Dybbol were 
harder to take than the Germans had 
supposed, but they fell at last, and with 
them the strong position of Sonderburg, 
in the island of Alsen. 

The Germans pushed northwards un- 
til they overran every part of the main- 
land, as far as the extreme north of Jut- 
land. It seemed as though Denmark 
must cease to exist among the nations 
of Europe ; but the Danes at last gave 
way, and were content to accept the 
terms of the Peace of Vienna, in Octo- 
ber, 1864, by which Christian IX. re- 
nounced all claim to Lauenburg, Hol- 
stein and Schleswig, and agreed to have 



DENMARK, SWEDEN AND NORWAY. 



187 



no voice in the. final disposal of those 
provinces. 

For the next two years Europe waited 
to see Prussia restore North Schleswig 
and Alsen, in which Danish is the popu- 
lar language, and which Austria had 
demanded should be restored to Den- 
mark In case the inhabitants should ex- 
press that as their wish by a plebiscite. 
When the war broke out between Aus- 
tria and Prussia in 1866, and resulted 
in the humiliation of Austria, the 
chances of restoration passed away, and 
the duchies have remained an integral 
part of Prussia. Notwithstanding her 
dismemberment, Denmark has pros- 
pered to an astonishing degree, and her 
material fortunes have been constantly 
in the ascendant. 

Denmark has been very fortunate in 
forming marriage alliances with the 
most powerful royal houses of Europe. 



On the loth of March, 1863, Princess 
Alexandra, of Denmark, was married to 
the Prince of Wales at Windsor. Her 
sister, the Princess Dagmar, was mar- 
ried to Prince Alexander, of Russia, on 
November 9, 1 866. 

In the great Franco-Prussian \^ ar of 
1870 Denmark remained neutral, and it 
may be said that of late yea.,« she has 
sought to maintain a peace policy witb 
other nations. She has, however^ beetx 
distracted by internal dissensions, but 
not to such an extent as to threaten her 
constitution or her unity. 

King Christian's seventieth birthday 
occurred on April 8, 1888, and the 15th 
of November of the same year was the 
twenty fifth anniversary of his accession 
to the throne. Both events were cele- 
brated with great enthusiasm through- 
out the country, and with renewed 
pledges of loyalty to the throne. 



SWEDEN IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



/®*USTAVUS IV. was not luite 
\ ^ I fourteen years old when his 
father was murdered, and dur- 
ing his minority the government was 
carried on by his uncle, the duke of 
Sodermanland. Gustavus began to ex- 
ercise royal authority in 1796. His reign 
was remarkable chiefly ^or the obstinacy 
with which he clung to his own ideas, 
no matter how far they might conflict 
with the obvious interests of his coun- 
try. He had a bitter detestation of 
Bonaparte, and in 1 803 went to Carls- 
ruhe in the hope that he might induce 
the emperor and some of the German 
princes to act with him in support of 
the Bourbons. 

His enmity led to an open rupture 
with France, and even after the peace 



of Tilsit, when Russia and Prussia of- 
fered to mediate between him and the 
French emperor, he refused to come to 
terms. The consequence was that he 
lost Stralsund and the island of Riigen. 
He displayed so much friendship for 
England that Russia and Denmark, act- 
ing under the influence of France, de- 
clared war against him ; and the whole 
of Finland was soon held by Russian 
troops. 

Gustavus attacked Norway, but hia 
army was driven back by the Danes and 
Norwegians. He still declined to make 
peace, and he even alienated England 
when she attempted to influence him by 
moderate counsels. The Swedish peo- 
ple were so enraged by the consequences 
of his policy that in 1809 he was de- 



188 



DENMARK, SWEDEN AND NORWAY. 



throned, and the claims of his descend- 
ants to the crown were also repudiated. 
He was succeeded by the duke of Soder- 
manland, who reigned as Charles XIII. 
Charles XIII., 1 809-181 8, concluded 
peace with Russia, Denmark and France, 
; ceding to Russia by the treaty of Fred- 
; erikshamm, 1 809, the whole of Finland. 
The loss of this territory, which had 
been so long associated with the Swed- 
ish monarchy, was bitterly deplored by 
the Swedes, but it was universally ad- 
mitted that under the circumstances the 
sacrifice was unavoidable. Charles as- 
sented to important changes in the con- 
stitution^ which were intended to bring 
to an end the struggle between the 
crown and the aristocracy and to pro- 
vide some security for the maintenance 
of popular rights. The king was still 
to be at the head of the executive, but it 
was arranged that legislative functions 
and control over taxation should belong 
to the diet, which was to consist of four 
orders— nobles, clergymen, burghers, 
and peasants. 

Sweden Surprises Europe. 

As Charles XIII. was childless, the diet 
elected as his successor Prince Christian 
Augustus of Holstein-Sonderburg-Au- 
gustenburg. In 18 10, soon after his ar- 
rival in Stockholm, this prince suddenly 
died ; and Sweden astonished Europe by 
asking Marshal Bernadotte to become 
heir to the throne. Bernadotte, who 
took the name of Charles John, was a 
man of great vigor and resource, and 
soon made himself the real ruler of 
vSweden, Napoleon treated Sweden as 
almost a conquered country, and com- 
pelled her to declare war with England. 
Bernadotte, associating himself heartily 
V^ith his adopted land, resolved to secure 



its independence, and entered into an 
alliance with Russia. 

In 18 1 3 he started with an army of 
20,000 Swedes to co-operate with the 
powers which were striving finally to 
crush the French emperor. The pro- 
ceedings of the Swedish crown prince 
were watched with some suspicion by 
the allies, as he was evidently unwilling 
to strike a decisive blow at France ; but 
after the battle of Leipsic he displayed 
much activity. He blockaded Hamburg, 
and by the peace of Kiel, concluded in 
January, 1 8 14, he forced Denmark to give 
up Norway. He then entered France, 
but soon returned and devoted his ener- 
gies to the conquest of Norway, which 
was very unwilling to be united with 
Sweden. Between the months of July 
and November, 18 14, the country was 
completely subdued, and Charles XIII. 
was proclaimed king. 

The Countries United. 

The union of Sweden and Norway^ 
which has ever since been maintained, 
was recognized by the Congress of Vi- 
enna ; and it was placed on a sound 
basis by llie frank adoption of the princi 
pie that, while the two countries should 
be subject to the same crown and act 
together in matters of common interest 
each should have complete control ove. 
its internal affairs. The new relation 
of their country to Norway gave much 
satisfaction to the Swedes, whom it con- 
soled in some measure for the loss of 
Finland. It also made it easy for them 
to transfer to Prussia in 1 8 1 5 what re- 
mained of their Pomeranian territories. 

In 18 1 8 Bernadotte ascended the 
throne as Charles XIV., and he reigned 
until he died in 1844. Great material 
improvements were effected during hif 



DENMARK, SWEDEN AND NORWAY. 



189 



reign. He caused new roads and canals 
to be constructed; lie encouraged the 
cultivation of districts which had for- 
merly been barren ; and he founded good 
industrial and naval schools. He v/as 
not, however, much liked by his sub- 
jects. He never mastered the Swedish 
language, and he was so jealous of any 
Interference with his authority that he 
'"ernly punished the expression of opin- 
ions which he disliked. 

To the majority of educated Swedes 
the constitution seemed to be ill-adapted 
to the wants of the nation, and there was 
a general demand for a political system 
which should make the Government 
more directly responsible to the people. 
In 1840 a scheme of reform was submit- 
ted to the diet by a committee which 
had been appointed for the purpose, 
but the negotiations and discussions to 
which it gave rise led to no definite 
result. 

King Oscar. 

Charles XIV. was succeeded by his 
son Oscar L, 1844- 18 59. Oscar had al- 
ways expressed sympathy with liberal 
opinions, and it was anticipated that the 
constitutional question would be settled 
during his reign without much diffi- 
. ilty. These expectations were disap- 
pointed. The diet m.et soon after his 
accession, and was asked to accept the 
scheme which had been drawn up in 
1840. The measure received the cordial 
approval of the burghers and peasants, 
but was rejected by the nobles and the 
clergy. In 1846 a committee was ap- 
pointed to prepare a new set of proposals, I 
and late in the following year the dis- | 
cussion of its plans began. i 

While the debates on the subject were I 
proceeding some excitement was pro- '^ 



duced by the revolutionary movement ol 
1848, and a new ministry, pledged to the 
cause of reform, came into ojEEce. The 
scheme devised by this ministry was 
accepted by the committee to which it 
was referred, but the provisions of the 
existing constitution rendered it neces- 
sary that the final settlement should 
depend upon the vote of the next diet. 
When the diet met in 1850 it was found 
that the difficulties in the way were for 
the time insuperable. The proposals 
of the Government were approved by a 
majority of the burghers, but they were 
opposed by the nobles, the clergy and 
the peasantry. The solution of the prob- 
lem had, therefore, to ' e indefinitely 
postponed. 

Valuable Reforms. 

Although the constitution was not 
reformed, much was done in other ways 
during the reign of Oscar I. to promote 
the national welfare. The criminal law 
was brought into accordance with mod- 
ern ideas, and the law of inheritance 
was made the same for both sexes and 
for all classes of the community. In- 
creased freedom was secured for indus- 
try and trade ; the methods of adminis- 
tration were improved ; and the state 
took great pains to provide the country 
v^^ith an efficient railway system. The 
result of the wise legislation of this 
period was that a new spirit of enter- 
prise was displayed by the commercial 
classes, and that in material prosperity 
the people made sure and rapid progress. 

In 1848, when the diificulty about 
Schleswig-Holstein led to war between 
Denmark and Germany, the Swedes 
sympathized cordially with the Danes, 
of whom they had for a long time ceased 
to be in the slightest degree jealous. 



190 



DENMARK, SWEDEN AND NORWAY. 



Swedish tr*. jps were landed in Fiinen, 
and through the influence of the Swed- 
ish government an armistice was con- 
cluded at Malmo. The excitement in 
favor of Denmark soon died out, and 
when the war was resumed in 1849 
Sweden resolutely declined to take part 
in it. The outbreak of the Crimean 
War greatly alarmed the Swedes, who 
feared that they might in some way be 
dragged into the conflict. 

In 1855, having some reason to com- 
plain of Russian acts of aggression on his 
northern frontiers, the king of Sweden 
and Norway concluded a treaty with 
England and France, pledging himself 
not to cede territory to Russia, and re- 
ceiving from the Western powers a 
promise of help in the event of his be- 
ing attacked. The demands based on 
this treaty were readily granted by 
Russia in the peace of Paris in 1856, 

A Popular Sovereign. 

Charles XV., 1 859-1 872, came to the 
throne after his father's death. Nearly 
two years before his accession he had 
been made regent in consequence of 
Oscar I.'s ill-health, Charles was a man 
of considerable intellectual ability and 
of decidedly popular sympathies, and 
during his reign the Swedish people 
became enthusiastically loyal to his dy- 
nasty. In 1 860 two estates of the realm 
•—the peasants and the burghers — pre- 
sented petitions, begging him to submit 
to the diet a scheme for the reform of 
the constitution. 

The main provisions of the plan of- 
fered in his name were that the diet 
should consist of two chambers, — the 
first chamber to be elected for a term of 
nine years by the provincial assemblies 
and by the municipal corporations of 



towns not represented in these assem- 
blies, the second chamber to be elected 
for a term of three years by all natives 
of Sweden possessing a specified prop- 
erty qualification. The executive power 
was to belong to the king, who was to 
act under the advice of a council of 
state responsible to the national repre- 
sentatives. This plan, which was re- 
ceived with general satisfaction, was 
finally adopted by the diet in 1866, and 
is still in force. 

Norway Free and Independent. 

Early in the reign of Charles XV. 
there were serious disputes between 
Sweden and Norway, and the union of 
the two countries could scarcely have 
been maintained but for the tact and 
good sense of the king, 

Charles XV. died in 1 872, and was suc- 
ceeded by his brother Oscar II. Under 
him Sweden has maintained good re- 
lations with all foreign powers, and 
political disputes in the diet have never 
been serious enough to interrupt the 
material progress of the nation. 

The history of Norway since i8i4has 
been practically that of Sweden. In 
that year Charles XIII. of Sweden was 
proclaimed king by the national diet 
assembled at Christiania, and accepted 
the constitution which declared Norway 
to be a free, independent, indivisible 
and inalienable state, united to Sweden. 
In 1893 the eightieth anniversary of the 
union of Norway and Sweden was cele 
brated ; King Oscar, at a banquet spoke 
strongly in support of the union, spec 
ially in foreign affairs. The fisheries 
have always been a source of profit to 
Norway, and an international exhibition 
was opened at Bergen in May, 1898, 
which was largely attended. 



CHAPTER XIV. 



Nations of Southern Europe — Italy, Greece, Turkey and Spain. 




N the 1st of January, 1806, Aus- 
tria lost lier Italian possessions 
by the treaty of Pressburg. The 
kingdom ceased on ihfe ovei- 
throw of Napoleon, 18 14, p^i^'a the Lom- 
bardo- Venetian kingdoms -vi^as estab- 
lished for Austria Apr?. 7, 181 5. The 
legions of Austria wtlt at the service 
of all the petty des;?ots in the other 
parts of Italy, while: a yet larger army 
of spies was at work in every corner of 
the unhappy country. 

The general misery provoked con- 
spiracy, and revolutionary societies 
sprang up everywhere. But the move- 
ment had as yet no directing head. 
There were risings in Southern Italy in 
1820, but they were suppressed the fol- 
lowing year and the leaders executed, 
and numerous less important insurrec- 
tions there, in the period preceding 
1846, were easily put down. 

Other abortive attempts were made 
in Piedmont, in I/onibardy, in Modena 
and the Romagna, the only result of 
which was to make the ruler's hand yet 
heavier on the people. Nor was there 
thorough unanimity or common action 
among Italian liberals. The extreme 
Republicans, represented by the party 
of Young Italy, were headed by Mazzini, 
whose fiery eloquence and enthusiasm 
transformed the vague desires of his 
countrymen into a passionate hope ; but 
his policy sanctioned methods from 
which more sober patriots shrank. 
From Geneva he led a band of refugees 
to the invasion of Savoy, in 1833, 
because the new king, Charles Albert, 
would not enter on a war with Aus- 



tria ; but this wild raid proved an utter 
failure. 

xllready the wise minds in Italy looked 
to Saiclinia for deliverance; but the 
dream of a confederacy, with perhaps 
the Pope as president, was not yet dis- 
pelled. Nay, it seemed about to be 
realized when, in 1846, Pius IX. as- 
sumed the tiara, and initiated a series 
of liberal reforms. Constitutions were 
granted in 1 847 by all the rulers save 
Austria and Ferdinand II. of Naples; 
and from the latter a constitution was 
wrung in the following year. 

Massacre in Milan. 

The year of revolutions, 1848, opened 
with a street massacre by the Austrians 
in Milan, on January 2nd. In February 
the French Republic was declared, and 
then in Italy the party of Mazzini was 
for a moment supreme. Sicily revolted 
from Ferdinand, and in March Charles 
Albert declared war on the Austrians, 
who had been driven out of Milan and 
Venice. He passed the Ticino, and de- 
feated Radetsky at Goito ; but on July 
25th the Austrians won the decisive 
battle of Custozza, re-entered Milan, 
and placed the country under martial 
law. 

In Naples there had been a massacre 
in May, and on August 30th Messina 
was bombarded. Meanwhi'.^c the Pope's 
heart had failed him. His troops had 
gone to the help of the Sardinians, bul 
before their surrender he had declared 
their advance to have been without his 
leave. The Republicans, who had re- 
garded his liberal measures with suspi- 

!9' 



192 



ITAI.Y, GREECE, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 




VIEW OF NAPLES WITH MOUNT 

cion and jealousy, now denounced him 
as a traitor to the cause of Italian 
freedom. On November 1 5th his wisest 
minister, Count Rossi, was assassinated, 
and Pius fled to Gaeta in disguise. 

In the hope of obtaining some advan- 
tage in the struggle, the Pope had en- 
deavored to establish diplomatic rela- 
•t^gns with Great Britain. These were 
accepted and authorized by Parliament, 
and undoubtedly had some moral effect 
in strengthening the position of the 
Vatican. The revolution, however, went 
forward with unabated vigor, and there 
was a political upheaval that astonished 



vEsrvirs ix tub distance. 

the thrones of Europe. All the con 
servative elements that st,?nd for sta- 
bility, law and order were called to 
action. 

A republic was set up in Rome on 
February 9, 1849, under Mazzini and 
two other triumvirs. The Grand Duke 
Leopold had fled from Florence, but 
Tuscany refused to join herself to the 
republic ; yet when the sovereign she 
had invited back returned, his first act, 
supported by the presence of Austrian 
troops, was to suppress the constitution. 
In Piedmont the ultra-radicals, headed 
by Rattazzi, were now in power, and a 



ITAtY, GimBCE, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



193 



ftresli campaign against Austria was be- 
gun — this time lasting less than four 
days. On March 23, Radetsky defeated 
the Piedmontese at Novara. Charles 
Albert gave up his throne to his son, 
Victor Emanuel II., and died, broken- 
hearted, at Oporto four months later. 

Efforts were now made to reduce 
Rome and Venice. In vain did Gari- 
baldi, who had been called to the de- 
fense of Rome, defeat the Neapolitans 
at Palestrina and Velletri. A French 
army, under General Oudinot, took the 
city, after a four weeks' siege, on July 
2nd. Venice, under the heroic Daniel 
Manin, bravely kept her enemies at bay 
until August 22nd. The petty sover- 
eigns now came back — the Pope last, 
in April, 1850. Rome, occupied by a 
French garrison, was kept in a state of 
siege for seven years, and the city never 
quite recovered its freedom until 1 8yc. 

Revolution a Failure. 

Italy's first general effort for freedom 
had ended in failure: 1848 was a year 
of unfulfilled visions. But one important 
gain was affected : the dream of federa- 
tion was ended, and all men looked now 
to the House of Savoy, save the few 
idealists, like Mazzini, who afterwards 
stood sternly apart from the triumphs 
of compromise. 

Victor Emmanuel was faithful to the 
Italian cause, and persevered in the path 
of reform on which his family had en- 
tered. Sardinia was relieved, by the 
law which gave the government power 
to abolish monasteries, from the incu- 
bus of an army of idle and ignorant 
ecclesiastics ; a liberal co istitution was 
in lorce, the press was ffee, education 
was spreading, and a measure of religious 
liberty was enjoyed. In 1853 the Sar- 
18 



dinian prime ministry passed into the 
hands of Cavour, the brain, as Gari- 
baldi was the arm, of the coming strug- 
gle. Henceforth he inspired and guided 
the national movement, until his death 
in the moment of victory. 

Another War. 

The Sardinian troops, reorganized by 
I^a Marmora, were sent under that gen- 
eral to the Crimea, where they won for 
themselves honor, and for their country 
allies amongst the great powers. Cavour 
made terms with Louis Napoleon, and 
in 1859 war was declared once more 
against Austria. The French and Ital- 
ians won the battles of Magenta and 
Solferino in June, and then the French 
emperor, acting independently, agreed 
to a treaty which left the Austrians in 
possession of Venetia, from the Mincio 
eastward. The indignation of the Pied- 
montese, whose sovereign had, tinder 
Cavour's agreement with Louis Napo- 
leon, to give up Savoy and Nice in re- 
turn for this assistance, was intense ; but 
the states of Central Italy voted their 
union to the kingdom of Victor Em- 
manuel, and were annexed in March, 
i860; and a few days after Southern 
Italy revolted from Francis II., the son 
of Ferdinand, the detested Bomba. 

Garibaldi and his volunteers, their 
expedition secretly favored by Cavour, 
went to the support of the insurrection 
in May, and in September entered Na- 
ples. Cavour, with the consent of Louis 
Napoleon (who, however, maintained 
the Pope in Rome, because his own 
position in France was strengthened by 
his championing the head of the Cath- 
olic church), now sent an army into the 
papal states, which defeated the Pope's 
troops at Castelfidardo, joined Garibaldi, 



194 



ITALY, GRE^ECE, turkey AND SPAIN. 



and helped him to defeat the Neapolitan 
generals on the Volturno. 

In October Victor Emmanuel entered 
the Abruzzi, and Garibaldi resigned his 
dictatorship and retired to his island- 
farm. In February, 1 86 1 , the first Italian 
parliament met at Turin, and Victor Em- 
manuel was proclaimed king of Italy. 
But Rome and Venice were not yet 
freed, and Cavour died in June of this 
year. In 1862 Garibaldi raised a body 
of volunteers to liberate Rome, and, 
having crossed to the mainland, was de- 
feated at Aspromonte ; the blame, how- 
ever, fell chiefly on Rattazzi, who was 
then minister, and who had sought to 
follow Cavour' s policy, and to reap the 
advantage of Garibaldi's expedition, but 
had neglected to first come to an under- 
standing with France. 

Garibaldi at the Front. 

The expressed sympathy of Europe 
brought about the September conven- 
tion of 1864, by which Louis Napoleon 
agreed gradually to withdraw the French 
troops on Italy's stipulation not to allow 
an attack on the Pope's territory. By 
the last article of the convention, the 
capital was removed a step nearer Rome 
— from Turin to Florence. 

In 1866 the Austro- Prussian war, in 
which Italy took but an inglorious part 
as the ally of Prussia, added to the king- 
dom the coveted territory of Venice. In 
the same year the French garrison was 
withdrawn from Rome, and Mazzini 
demanded that the city should be cap- 
tured. In 1 867 Garibaldi and his vol- 
unteers gaine a victory near Rome, and 
the French returned ; the volunteers 
surrendered in November, and the gen- 
eral was arrested. But after the fall of 
the empire, in 1870, the new foreign 



minister of France, Jules Favre, de- 
clared the September Convention at an 
end, and the king, who had only pre- 
vented the democrats from moving by 
arresting Mazzini, was at length free 
to act as he desired. 

Free Italy. 

On September 20th he entered Rome, 
and the emancipation of Italy was com- 
pleted. The Pope retained the Vatican, 
the church of Sta Maria Maggiore, the 
Lateran palace, the villa of Castel Gan- 
dolfo, with their precincts, and was 
voted an income of ^i 50,000 out of the 
revenues of the state ; yet the spiritual 
sovereign bore but impatiently the loss 
of his temporal power, and frequent 
complaints and denunciations were di- 
rected from the Vatican against the 
palace on the Quirinal. 

Meanwhile Italy, at last free and 
united, has become one of the great 
continental powers, as has been shown 
in the preceding sections of this article. 
It will be the hope of all who have fol- 
lowed the story of her long degradation 
and gallant recovery of freedom that 
this rapid growth may not, like her 
earlier precocious development in arts 
and commerce, be bought at the after 
cost of premature decay. 

The later history of Italy has been 
uneventful. Brigandage, rife under the 
tyrannical rule of the Bourbons, and 
afterwards encouraged by their emis- 
saries, has been gradually suppressed, 
education and public works have stead- 
ily advanced, and in the south the people 
have become more reconciled — at least, 
less inveterately hostile — to the laws. 
In January, 1878, Victor Emmanue^ 
died, and was succeeded by his eldest 
son, Humbert I. (born 1844); and one 



ITALY, GREECE, TURKEY AND SPAIN 



195 



montli later Pius IX. died also, and Leo 
XIII became pope. The most important 
internal measure s'nce then has been the 



tions so far is not great ; but the govern- 
ment has been from time to time em- 
barrassed by the agitation conducted by 




WORLD RENOWNED CATHEDRAL OF MILAN. 



wide extension of the franchise, and in 
1883 the resumption of specie payment. 
The popular interest in political ques- 



the Irredentists, whose aim is to add to 
the kingdom all those districts of Eu- 
rope where the Italian speech prevails. 



196 



ITALY, GRBBCB, TURKEY AND SPAIN, 



In 1883 the ministry denounced the 
atiieme of the association, as aiming in- 
directly at the downfall of the monarchy 
>nd at the same time extolled the triple 
lUiance (of Italy, Germany and Aus- 
*rria), into which Italy, exasperated at 
jhe extension of French influence in 
Tunis, had entered. To this same jeal 
iusy of French encroachments on the 
southern Mediterranean shore may be 
ittributed the erection into an Italian 
colony, in. 1882, of a coaling station 
'ounded the year before at Assab, on the 
^ed Sea. In 1885 Massowah was occu- 
pied, and in 1889 the Italian colonial 
territory was amalgamated under the 
name of Eritrea. 

In January, 1887, a disaster to the 
'^talian troops brought on a desultory 
/far with Abyssinia, which ended in an 
arrangement, in 1889, that placed the 
latter country under Italian protection. 
In 1888 Signor Depretis, who had 



headed eight ministries, was succeeded 
as premier by Signor Crispi. Since 
then the main interest of Italian affairs 
has centered in the finances, and in the 
struggle to meet, out of the resources 
of the country, the expenses of the 
heavy armament. 

On the nth of October, 1897, much 
excitement was caused in Rome by a 
popular demonstration against the 
scheme of taxation on incomes and 
personal property. The populace came 
into conflict with the troops, who at 
length suppressed the uprising. The 
fiftieth anniversary of the Italian consti- 
tution of 1848 was celebrated at Rome 
in March, 1898, but during May follow- 
ing there were bread riots in various 
parts of the kingdom on account of the 
high prices of food, and quiet was re- 
stored only by the strong arm of the 
military power, by which the turbulent 
uprisings were suppressed. 



GREECE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 




HEN the century began Greece 
was under the sway of Tur- 
key, but the French Revolu- 
tion had roused the minds of the 
Greek people into activity, and they 
were ashamed that a nation which 
had played such a grand part in the 
early civilization of mankind should 
be the slaves of an illiterate and bar- 
barous horde of aliens. The country 
was ripe for revolt, and a secret society 
was formed to make ready for a rising 
of the people. 

Accordingly in 1821 the war for in- 
d>Srpendence broke out. The insurrec- 
tion was begun by Prince Alexander 
Hypsilantes, an official in the service 



of Russia, who had been elected head 
of the chief secret society. He crossed 
the Pruth, March 6, 1821, with a few 
followers, and was soon joined by sev- 
eral men of great bravery at the head 
of considerable troops. But the expe- 
dition was badly managed, and in June, 
Hypsilantes fled to Austria, having en- 
tirely failed in his object. And in all 
the efforts to overthrow the power of 
the Turks in the northern provinces 
the Greeks failed, though some men 
fought very bravely. 

In the Peloponnesus the insurrection 
broke out also in March in several 
places, and most prominent among the 
first movers was Germanos, archbishop 



ITALY, GREEJCE, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



197 



of Patras. Everywhere the Greeks 
drove the Turks before them ; they were 
so successful that in January, 1822, the 
independence of Greece was proclaimed. 
But they soon began to quarrel among 
themselves. The aspirants for honors 
and rewards were numberless, and they 
could not agree. 

Accordingly a civil war raged in 1823 
and 1824, inspired by Colocotronis, a 
chief who attained great influence, and 
in 1824 another civil war of short dura- 
tion, called the War of the Primates. 
During this period the Greek fleet was 
very active, and did good service. It 
was ably led by Miaonlis, a man of firm 
character and great skill. And he was 
well seconded by the intrepid Canaris, 
whose fire ships did immense damage 
to the Turkish fleet, and filled the 
Turkish sailors with indescribable terror. 
For the ravages of the Greek fleet the 
Turks wreaked fearful vengeance on 
the innocent inhabitants of the lovely 
island of Chios, April, 1822, butchering 
in cold blood multitudes of its peaceful 
inhabitants, and carrying off" others to 
the slave market. The savage atroci- 
ties then perpetrated caused a thrill of 
horror throughout the civilized world. 

Successive Defeats. 

Two years after they perpetrated simi- 
lar outrages on the islands of Kasos and 
Psara. The sultan now invoked the 
aid of Mehemet Ali, pasha of Egypt, 
and his stepson, Ibrahim, landed on the 
Peloponnesus with a band of well-dis- 
ciplined Arabs in 1824. Ibrahim carried 
everything before him, and the Greeks 
lost nearly every place that they had 
acquired. Some towns offered a strong 
resistance, and especially famous is the 
siege of Mesolonghi, which lasted from 



27th of April, 1825 to April 22d, 1826. 
Nothing could exceed the firmness and 
bravery displayed by Greek men and 
women during that siege; and their 
glorious deeds and sad fate attracted 
the 'attention of all Europe. 

The interest in the Greeks, which 
had been to some extent aroused by 
lyord Byron and other English sympa- 
thizers in 1823, now became intense, 
and volunteers appeared from France 
and Germany as well as from Englana 
and America. I^ord Cochrane was ap- 
pointed admiral of the Greek fleet, and 
Sir Richard Church, generalissimo of 
the land forces, but they did not pre- 
vent the capture of Athens by the 
Turks, June 2d, 1827. Most of the 
European Governments had remained 
indifferent, or had actually discouraged 
the outbreak of the Greeks. Russia 
had disowned Hypsilantes. 

Good Fortune for Greece. 

The monarchs of Europe were afraid 
that the rising of the Greeks was onl) 
another eruption of democratic feeling 
fostered by the French Revolution, and 
thought that it ought to be suppressed. 
But the vast masses of the people were 
now interested, and demanded from 
their governments a more liberal treat- 
ment of Greece. Canning inaugurated 
in 1823, and now carried out this new 
policy in England. An accident came 
to the aid of the Greeks. The fleets o:*^ 
England, France, and Russia were crui- 
sing about the coasts of the Pelopon- 
nesus, to prevent the Turkish fleet 
ravaging the Greek islands or main 
land. 

Winter coming on, the admirals 
thought it more prudent to anchor in 
the Bay of Navarino, where the Turk- 



198 



ITAIvY, GREECE, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



isli fleet lay. The Turks regarded their 
approach as prompted by hostile feel- 
ings and commenced firing on them, 
whereupon a general engagement en- 
sued, in which the Turkish fleet was 
annihilated, October 20th, 1827. Short- 
ly afterward, January 1 8th, 1828, Capo- 
distrias, who had been in the service of 
Russia, was appointed president of 
Greece for seven years, the French 
cleared the Morea of hostile Turks, and 
Greece was practically independent. 

President Assassinated 

But several years had to elapse ere 
affairs reached a settled condition. Ca- 
7)odistrias was Russian in his ideas of 
government, and, ruling with a high 
hand, gave great offence to the masses 
of the people; and his rule came to an 
untimely end by his assassination on Oc- 
tober 9th, 1 83 1. Anarchy followed, but 
at length Otho of Bavaria was made 
king, and the protecting powers signed 
a convention by which the present 
limits were definitely assigned to the 
new kingdom. Henceforth Greece has 
existed as a recognized independent 
kingdom. 

Throughout the whole of the war of 
independence in Greece, the people be- 
haved with great bravery and self-sacri- 
fice. They showed a steady adherence 
to the idea of liberty. They were some- 
times savage in their conduct to the 
Turks, and barbarities occurred which 
stain their history. Yet on the whole 
the historian has much to praise and 
little to blame in the great mass, espe- 
cially of the agricultural population. 
But no single man arose during the 
period capable of being in all respects 
a worthy leader. 

Nor can this be wondered at. All 



the men who took a prominent part in 
the movements had received thei, ^rain- 
ing in schools where constitutionalism 
was the last doctrine that was likely to be 
impressed on them. Several of them 
had been in the service of Russia, and 
had full faith only in arbitrary power. 
Many of them were accustomed to 
double dealing, ambitious and avari- 
cious. Some of them had been brought 
up at the court of Ali Pasha of Jannina, 
and had become familiar with savage 
acts of reckless despotism. Others had 
been and indeed remained during the 
continuance of the war, chiefs, having 
but little respect for human life, and 
habituated to scenes of cruelty and 
plunder. Some of them also came from 
the Mainotes, who owed their independ- 
ence to the habitual use of arms, and 
who were not troubled by many scru- 
ples. 

Free Only in Name. 

It could not be expected that such men 
would act with great mercy or prudence 
in dealing with Turks who had butch- 
ered or enslaved their kinsmen and 
kinswomen for generations. Even 
amongst the foreigners who volunteered 
to aid the Greeks, few if any were found 
of supreme ability, and after the king- 
dom was established the Greeks were 
unfortunate in the strangers who came 
to direct them. Otho had been brought 
up in a despotic court, and knew no 
other method of ruling. He brought 
along with him Bavarians, to whom 
he entrusted the entire power, and the 
Greeks had the mortification of know- 
ing that, though their kingdom was 
independent, no Greek had a chance 
of being elevated to any ministerial 
office of importance. 

Accordingly a revolution broke ^ut 



ITAI,Y, GRKBCK, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



199 



in 1843; the Bavarians were dismissed, 
and Otho agreed to rule through re- 
sponsible ministers and a representa- 
tive assembly. But he failed to fulfill 
his promise. Discontent reached its 
height in 1862, when another revolu- 
tion broke out and Otho had to leave 
Greece. The great mass of the people 
longed for a constitutional monarchy, 
and gave a striking proof of this by 
electing Prince Alfred king of Greece. 
This choice was determined by univer- 
sal suffrage, and out of 241,202 Greek 
citizens who voted 230,016 recorded 
their votes in favor of the English 
prince. The vote meant simply that 
the Greek people were tired of uncon- 
stitutional princes, and hoped that they 
would end their troubles if they had a 
prince accustomed to see parliamentary 
government respected and enforced. 

Threefold Alliance. 

The three protecting powers, — Eng- 
land, France, and Russia, — had how- 
ever bound themselves to allow no one 
related to their own ruling families to 
become king of Greece. When the 
Greek people received this news, they 
begged England to name a king, and 
after several refusals England found one 
in Prince William of Schleswig-Hol- 
stein, son of the king of Denmark. The 
Greek people accepted him, and in 1863 
he became king with the name of 
George I. Britain added the Ionian 
islands to his kingdom. 

In 1875 the ministry gave great of- 
fence to the Greek people by its uncon- 
stitutional procedure, but the king per- 
sisted in standing by it. The people, 
however, persevered in the use of legi- 
timate means to oust the ministry ; the 
king at last prudently yielded; and thus 



a revolution was prevented. The effort 
of the Greeks to extend their boundaries 
is the last phase of their history, and is 
still in progress. In 1853 when the 
Crimean war broke out, the Greeks 
sided with the Russians, and in 1854 
they made inroads into Thessaly and 
Epirus, but English and French troops 
landed at the Piraeus, and forcibly put 
an end to the Russian alliance and to 
Greek ideas of acquiring additional ter- 
ritory. In 1866 to 1869 the Cretans 
struggled bravely but unsuccessfully to 
throw off the Turkish yoke and become 
a part of the Greek kingdom. 

Desperate Battles. 

The most important events of recent 
date in Greek history are connected 
with the war between Greece and Tur- 
key of 1897, which was declared by 
Turkey on April 17th. It was claimed 
by Turkey that the Greeks were violat- 
ing agreements respecting the bounda- 
ries of territory, and also concerning 
liberties guaranteed to the inhabitants 
of Crete. 

Desperate battles occurred during 
April of 1897, in most of which the 
Turkish arms were victorious. In May 
the mediation of the European Powers 
was accepted and an armistice was pro- 
posed. Cretan autonomy was agreed to 
by Greece, but the Turkish conditions 
for ending the war were $50,000,000 in- 
demnity, the annexation of Thessaly, 
and several other oppressive demands.} 
Meanwhile a desperate battle at Domoko 
resulted in the slaughter of nearly 3,000}' 
Turks, but the Greek army was finally 
forced to retreat, the result being an- 
other attempt to end the war. 

A collective note of the Powers was 
sent tp Turkey proposing conditions ol 



200 



ITALY, GREECE. TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



peace. Negotiations were carried on at 
Constantinople, and the Powers resisted 
the demands of the Porte as to the an- 
nexation of Thessaly and the war in- 
demnity. After much sparring on both 
sides, Turkey was compelled to submit 



to the principal demands of the Powers 
and the war was terminated. The treaty 
of peace was signed at Constantinople 
in December, 1897. The final payment 
of the war indemnity was made July 10, 
1898, by the Powers interested. 



(HFSb 



TURKEY IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



[B Turkish power was at a very 
]l low ebb at the opening of the 
nineteenth century, and many 
of the subject nations, both Christian 
and Mohammedan, sought to throw off 
the yoke of the sultan and establish 
their independence. In 1806 Servia 
revolted under the leadership of Czerni 
George. It was conquered in 1813, but 
again revolted in 18 15, under Milosh 
Obrenowitz. Montenegro also rebelled, 
and until the Crimean war these pro- 
vinces enjoyed a state of quasi inde- 
pendence. Egypt was also strongly dis- 
affected. In 1809 a war broke out 
with Russia, which resulted in a further 
loss of Turkish territory. It was closed 
by the treaty of Bucharest, by which 
the sultan ceded to Russia Bessarabia, 
Ismail and Kilia, one-third of Moldavia, 
and fortresses of Chotzim and Bender. 

In 1807 Selim III. died, and was suc- 
ceeded by Mahmoud II., under whom 
the Turkish power continued to decline. 
The population of the Turkish empire 
in Europe was about 14,000,000, of 
wliom scarcely 2,000,000 were Turks. 
The remainder were Christians, consist- 
ing principally of the four distinct races 
inhabiting European Turkey, viz. : the 
Sclavonians, occupying Bulgaria, Servia, 
Bosnia, Herzegovina and Montenegro ; 
the Roumanians, occupying Moldavia 
and Wallachia; the Albanians, dwelling 
ill ancient Epirus, and the Greeks. 



The Greeks had never willingly ac- 
cepted the rule of Turkey, and some 
portions of them had never submitted 
to the porte, but had maintained a wild 
brigandish existence in their moun- 
tains. Though the Greeks were at- 
tached to Russia by the strong ties of a 
common religion, that power refused 
to do anything for their freedom, and 
Alexander I. met their appeal for aid 
against their Turkish oppressors with 
the cold command : " I^et the Greek 
rebels obey their lawful sovereign." 

In spite of this discouragement the 
Greeks determined to throw off the 
Turkish yoke, and in March, 1821, the 
first blow was struck. The people of 
the peninsula and the islands rose in a 
general revolt. When the news of the 
revolution was received at Constantino- 
ple a general massacre of the Greek in- 
habitants of the capital ensued. The 
war went on through the year 1821, the 
patriot forces winning several important 
successes, among which was the capture 
of the Turkish capital of the Morea. In 
January, 1822, a national congress met 
at Epidaurus, proclaimed the independ- 
ence of Greece, and adopted a provis- 
ional constitution. 

In the spring of the same year the 
Turks made a descent upon Scio, mas- 
sacred 40,000 of the inhabitants, and 
carried away thousands to the slave 
markets of Smyrna and Constantinople, 



ITALY, GREECE. TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



201 



In 1823 the admiration and sympathy 
of all Europe was aroused by the heroic 
death of Marco Bozzaris, who, with a 
small band of Suliote patriots, attacked 
the Turkish camp and fell in the arms 
of victory. 

The Euiopean governments looked 



fore he could accomplish much for the 
cause he had adopted. 

Unable to conquer Greece, the sultan 
summoned Mehemet Ali, the Viceroy 
of Egypt, wh<7 enjoyed a state of actual 
independence, to complete the task. 
This vigorous leader spread terror and 




GREAT NAVAIv BATTLE OF NAVARINO. 



coldly upon the gallant struggle, but 
the people remembered the glories of 
ancient Greece, and supplies of money, 
arms, and men were sent to the patriots. 
Foremost among those who devoted 
their fortunes and talents to the free- 
dom of Greece was Lord Byron. He 
died at Missolonghi in April, 1824, be- 



desolation throughout Hellas. Misso- 
longhi was taken after a heioic defence, 
and Athens was captured in 1825. The 
Egyptian forces had orders to make a 
desolation of Greece, and to carry off 
the people into slavery. 

Alexander I. of Russia fortunately 
died at this juncture, and the Czsr 



202 



ITALY, GRKKCE, TURKEY AND SPAIN". 



Nicholas, his successor, adopted a dif- 
ferent policy. Moved either by his 
sympathy with his co-religionists or by 
his anxiety to weaken Turkey, he re- 
solved to intervene in behalf of the 
Greeks, and was joined by France and 
England, who were anxious to impose 
a check upon the Egyptian viceroy. 
These powers sent a strong combined 
leet to the Mediterranean. On the 20th 
jf October, 1827, this fleet, under the 
command of the English Admiral Cod- 
rington, accidentally encountered the 
Turkish and Egyptian fleet in the Bay 
of Navarino. A battle ensued, which 
resulted in the destruction of the Mo- 
hammedan fleet. 

Crete and Syria. 

This success revived the hopes of the 
Greeks, and the next year Russia de- 
clared war against Turkey ; and the 
sultan, in order to save his Danubian 
provinces, was obliged to sign the treaty 
of Adrianople, by which he acknowl- 
edged the independence of Greece. 

Mehemet Ali was given the sover- 
eignty of Crete by the sultan for his 
services in the Greek revolution. Not 
satisfied with this acquisition, he sent 
his son Ibrahim Pasha, an able com- 
mander, in 1 83 1, to conquer Syria. 
That country was overrun by the 
Egyptian forces, who also advanced to- 
wards Asia Minor. Their progress was 
at length stayed by the intervention of 
Russia, England, and France, whose 
forces defeated Ibrahim at Nisi bis on 
the Euphrates. A few days after this 
battle Sultan Mahmoud died. France 
was anxious that Mehemet Ali should 
succeed him, but England and Rus- 
sia drove him out of Acre and Syria, 
and secured the Turkish throne for 



Abdul Medjid, the young son of Mah- 
moud. 

In 1840 the treaty of Eondon was 
signed. Crete and Syria were restored 
to the Porte, and Mehemet Ali was 
limited to Egypt. For many years after 
this Sir Stratford Canning, afterwards 
Eord Stratford de Redcliffe, the Eng- 
lish Ambassador at Constantinople, 
controlled the counsels of the Porte. 
By the treaty of London, Egypt be- 
came to a certain extent an indepen- 
dent State, though owning a nominal 
allegiance to the sultan 

The Crimean War. 

In 185 1 began the troubles which re- 
sulted in the Crimean War, which we 
have related elsewhere. The treaty of 
Paris, in 1856, which brought this war 
to a close, admitted Turkey to the Eu- 
ropean system of states, and guaranteed 
the integrity of her dominions. Servia 
was given a native prince, and was 
placed under the protection of the great 
powers, though she retained a nominal 
allegiance to the sultan. Moldavia and 
Wallachia, a few years later, were erec- 
ted into a similarly independent state 
under the name of Roumania, 

In 1 86 1 Abdul Medjid died, and was 
succeeded by Abdul Aziz, In 1868 a 
formidable insurrection broke out in 
the island of Crete or Candia. It aroused 
great sympathy among the European 
people, and came near producing a war 
between Greece and Turkey, but was 
quelled during the following year by 
the Turks. 

Mehemet Ali was succeeded as Vice- 
roy of Egypt by his son Ibrahim Pasha, 
under whose vigorous rule Egypt made 
great progress. He died in 1848, and 
Abbas Pasha became viceroy, and was 



1TAL1. GRBECK, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



203 



in "his turn succeeded by Ismail Pasha, 
the reigning khedive. 

In 1867 the Sultan Abdul Aziz visited 
Paris and London and the principal 
cities of Europe. This was the first 
time a Turkish sovereign ever made a 
peaceful journey beyond the limits of 
his own empire. 

The result of the war between France 
and Germany, in 1 870-7 1 , affected Tur- 
key in a most important respect. The 
treaty of Paris, which closed the Cri- 
mean War, placed a restriction upon 
the aggressive power of Russia by neu- 
tralizing the Black Sea. The reverses 
of France in her contest with Germany 
so weakened her that she was unable to 
sustain England in upholding the treaty 
of Paris. Russia promptly took advan- 
tage of this to demand of the powers a 
modification of those articles of the 
treaty which prevented her from forti- 
fying her ports or maintaining an armed 
fleet in the Black Sea. 

A New Treaty. 

England warmly opposed the demand, 
but France was in no condition to do 
so, and Germany and the Austro-Hun- 
garian monarchy gave their moral sup- 
port to the Russian demand, and avowed 
their intention not to co-operate with 
Englaiid in any armed resistance to it. 
The result was that a conference of the 
representatives of the powers was held 
in London, and on the 13th of February, 
1 87 1, a treaty was signed by them abro- 
gating the articles of the treaty of Paris 
as to the navigation of the Black Sea 
and the right of Russia to fortify her 
ports. The protection afforded to Tur- 
key by the great powers was thus taken 
from her. 

In 1873 t^^ sultan's authority over 



Egypt was further weakened by the 
concessions which made the khedive 
almost an independent sovereign, and 
which we have related in the history of 
Egypt. 

In the summer of 1875 an insurrec- 
tion broke out in Herzegovina. The 
misrule and oppression of the Turkish 
government had come to be insupport- 
able, and the inhabitants rose in rebel 
lion and repulsed the attacks of the Tur 
kish troops. Servia, Bosnia, Montene- 
gro and Bulgaria, were profoundly ex- 
cited by these events, and were open in 
their sympathy with their struggling 
Christian brethren in Herzegovina. 
Substantial aid was also rendered by 
the people of those countries, the gov- 
ernments of which for a time remained 
neutral. 

Turkey Bankrupt. 

In October, 1875, Turkey failed to 
meet the interest on her national debt, 
the principal of which amounted to over 
^900,000,000. A decree was issued by 
the porte promising speedy payment of 
half the interest and making provision, 
for the payment of the other half The 
promise was not fulfilled, and in July, 
1 876, the porte was compelled to declare 
its insolvency by stating that all pay- 
ments on account of the national debt, 
must cease until the close of the war with 
its revolted provinces. As nearly every 
dollar of this debt was due to citizens of 
Western Europe, principally English 
subjects, the failure of the Turks to 
meet their obligations greatly weakened 
the friendship which, up to this time, 
the English people had felt for them. 

On the 30th of May, 1876, the Sultan 
Abdul Aziz, to whose mismanage.ncnt 
many of the troubles of the countr , 



204 



1TAI.Y, GRBKCE, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



were due, was forcibly deposed, and 
placed in confinement in one of the 
palaces at Constantinople. On the 4th 
of June he was found dead in his cham- 
ber, having committed suicide. 

Murad (or Amurath) V., the son of 
Abdul Medjid, was proclaimed sultan 
in the place of his uncle. His reign 
was a brief one. He proved so hope- 
lessly imbecile that, on the 3TSt of Au- 
gust, 1876, he was in his turn deposed, 
and was succeeded by his brother Abdul 
Hamid II. 

Massacre of Christians. 

In the meantime the war with Herze- 
govina had been carried on. In Octo- 
ber, 1875, the sultan declared that the 
taxes which had been one cause of the 
revolt, should be lowered from their ex- 
cessive rate to ten per cent., that arrears 
of taxes should be abandoned, and that 
the Christians should be granted a rep- 
resentation in the state councils. The 
Christians had learned from long expe- 
rience to distrust these promises, and 
the war went on. In October, 1875, 
some Christians who had come back to 
their homes from Dalmatia were massa- 
cred by the Turks, and the struggle 
became more bitter in consequence of 
this act. Servia and Montenegro se- 
cretly gave aid to the rebels, and the 
Prince of Servia declared in a speech to 
the national assembly that it was impos- 
sible for Servia to be indifferent to the 
fate of the Herzegovines. 

It was feared by the European powers 
that the troubles in Turkey might be 
the means of embroiling other coun- 
tries in the war, and near the close of 
the year 1875, Germany, Austria, and 
Russia made a combined effort to secure 
peace. Austria, whose territory ad- 



joined the Turkish dominions, was 
especially fearful that the revolt would 
extend across her border and involve 
her Sclavonic possessions. A joint 
note was drawn up in the name of the 
three powers by Count Andrassy, the 
Austrian Prime Minister. This note 
proposed to the sultan to grant certain 
reforms to his Christain subjects. These 
were the establishment of complete re- 
ligious liberty ; the abolition of the 
system of farming out the taxes ; the 
application of the revenue arising from 
indirect taxation in Bosnia and Herze- 
govina to the general purposes of the 
Ottoman government, and the employ- 
ment of the results of the direct taxa- 
tion in the improvement and govern- 
ment of those provinces. 

Turkey Makes Promises. 

The Porte accepted all the reforms 
but the disposition of the taxes, at the 
same time promising to set aside a cer- 
tain sum from the national treasury for 
the local wants of Bosnia and Herze- 
govina. The insurgents were not will- 
ing to trust the pledges of the Porte, 
however, and the war went on. On the 
30th of March, 1876, an armistice was 
concluded, and an effort was made by 
an agent of the Austrian government 
to effect a settlement. The terms de- 
manded by the insurgents were so ex- 
travagant, however, that Austria re- 
fused to consider them. 

The Andrassy note having failed, a 
note was drawn up at Berlin on the 
I ith of May, 1876, by the Prime Min- 
isters of Germany, Austria, and Russia, 
and forwarded to Constantinople. It 
stated peremptorily that as the sultan 
had given the powers a pledge to exe- 
cute the reforms proposed by them, he 



ITALY, GREECE. TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



205 



had also given them a moral right to 
insist that he should fulfill his promise. 
The note then demanded an armistice 
of two months, and closed with a threat 
that if the sultan failed to comply with 
the demands of the powers, they might 
find it necessary to compel him to do so. 

The note substantially supported the 
demands of the Christians of Herze- 
govina with respect to taxation and the 
restoration of their property, etc. France 
and Italy agreed to support the note, 
but England declined to do so. 

The war had gone on in the mean- 
time, and Bulgaria had become to some 
extent involved in it. Early in May 
the Turkish officials in Bulgaria deter- 
mined to put a stop to the troubles in 
that province by the wholesale exter- 
mination of the Bulgarian Christians. 
A systematic plan was arranged for this 
ourpose, and at the appointed time the 
Christians were attacked in their vil- 
lages by the Turks. Many hundreds 
were massacred in cold blood, including 
people of all ages and both sexes ; women 
were outraged, property carried off or 
destroyed, and villages burned. 

Great Indignation. 

The news of the massacre sent a thrill 
of horror and indignation throughout 
Europe, and the Turks were denounced 
in unmeasured terms. In England, 
which country had until now given its 
moral support to Turkey, the outburst 
of indignation was intense, and the 
popular feeling was so outspoken that 
the government was compelled to pause 
in its support of the sultan and act more 
in sympathy with the other European 
powers. 

An immediate result of the massacres 
was the active participation of Servia 



' in the war. In July, 1876, both Servia 
i and Montenegro declared war against 
I Turkey. The Servian army attempted 
to invade Bulgaria, but was so unsuc- 
cessful in its efforts that on the 241-' 
of August Prince Milan accepted 
the offer of England to mediate between 
him and the sultan. Montenegro had 
been generally successful in her efforts, 
but, in view of the action of Servia, con- 
sented to treat for peace. On the ist. 
of September England proposed an ar- 
mistice of a month between the bellige- 
rents. 

War Resumed. 

The sultan refused to grant this, but 
declared himself willing to make peace 
on condition that Prince Milan shoul(? 
come to Constantinople and do homage 
to him, that Turkish garrisons should 
be placed in four of the Servian for- 
tresses, that Servia should pay an in- 
demnity, and that the porte should be 
allowed to construct and work a rail- 
road through Servian territory. The 
powers refused to allow these terms to 
be discussed. Great Britain now pro- 
posed as a basis of negotiation that Bos- 
nia and Bulgaria should be given local 
self-government without being freed 
from the dependence upon the porte. 
Prince Milan refused to accept this pro- 
posal, and the war was resumed. The 
Turkish armies now prepared to invade 
the territory of Servia, but were checked 
by the interposition of Russia. 

Up to this time the action of <-he Rus- 
sian government had been entirely con- 
servative, being confined to its partici- 
pation in the preparation of the diplo- 
matic notes addressed to Turkey. Now 
large numbers of Russian officers and 
soldiers entered the Servian army with 



206 



ITALY, GREECE. TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



the consent and approval of the czar. 
They enabled the Servians to hold out 
against the Turks until the 31st of Oc- 
tober, when the fortified city of Alex- 
inatz was captured by the latter. This 
success placed Servia practically at the 
mercy of Turkey. In the meantime 
orders had been sent to the Russian am- 
bassador at London to inform the British 
government that it was the opinion of 
the czar that force should be used to 
stop the war and put an end to Turkish 
misrule. 

Plan of Reform. 

lyord Derby stated that England was 
prepared to unite with Russia in bring- 
ing about an armistice of not less than a 
month, but would not support an armed 
'ntervention in Turkish affairs. At this 
juncture Turkey, to the surprise of all 
the powers, suddenly offered an armis- 
tice for six months, and announced a 
scheme of reform for the whole empire. 
England, Austria and France favored 
the armistice, but Russia declared that 
she could not ask Servia to accept so 
long a truce since the principality could 
not keep its army on a war footing for 
so long a time ; and this view of the 
case was supported by Italy. 

Russia demanded a truce of four or 
six weeks. The Turkish forces were 
pressing the siege of Alexinatz with en- 
ergy, and it was apparent that that place 
could not hold out much longer. Gen- 
"*'«^\ Il^Tiatieff, the Russian ambassador 
at Constantinople, was therefore ordered 
to demand of the porte an acceptance 
within forty-eight hours of the armistice 
proposed by Russia. The demand was 
made on the 31st of October, and on 
the same day Alexinatz was captured by 
the Turks. The Russian demand was 



granted b)^ the porte, and the armistice 
was proclaimed. 

Although determined to support Ser- 
via against Turkey, Russia was anxious 
to maintain friendly relations with the 
other European powers. On the 2d of 
November Lord Adolphus Loftus, the 
English ambassador, had an interview 
with the czar at Livadia. The czar 
"pledged his sacred word and honor'' 
that he had no intention of acquiring 
Constantinople, and that if necessity 
compelled him to occupy a portion of 
Bulgaria it would only be provisionally, 
and until the safety of the Christian 
population was assured. 

A British Threat. 

These assurances gave great satisfac- 
tion to the English government, which 
now assumed the initiative in proposing 
a general conference of the representa- 
tives of the great powers of Europe to 
meet at Constantinople. On the 4th of 
November the Marquis of Salisbury was 
appointed the English representative. 
The proposal was accepted, but all the 
powers did not send special representa- 
tives. Germany, Russia and Italy con- 
sidered their ambassadors at Constanti- 
nople sufficient ; but Austria and France 
followed the example of England, and 
sent special representatives to assist 
their resident ambassadors. 

Before the conference assembled the 
Earl of Beaconsfield (Disraeli), the 
English premier, delivered a speech 
sharply criticising the Russian attitude, 
and closed it with significant words : 
"While the policy of England is peace, 
no country is so well prepared for war." 
The next day, November 9th, the czar, 
in an address to the nobles and com- 
munal council of Moscow, said : "I 



ITALY, GRBECB, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



207 



hope this conference will bring peace ; 
should this, however, not be achieved, 
and should I see that we cannot attain 
such guarantees as are necessary for 
carrying out what we have a right to 
demand of the Porte, I am firmly deter- 
mined to act independently." These 
words were generally regarded as a re- 
ply to Lord Beaconsfield's threat, and 
caused considerable excitement in Eu- 
rope, as they implied a possibility of 
war between Russia and England. 

Lord Salisbury reached Constantino- 
ple on the 5th of December. On his 
journey from London he had visited 
Paris, Berlin, Vienna, and Rome, and 
had ascertained the views of those gov- 
ernments with respect to the Eastern 
question. Immediately upon reaching 
Constantinople he entered into commu- 
nication with the porte and with the 
foreign ambassadors and representa- 
tives. He was encouraged by this in- 
tercourse to believe that the conference 
would result in a satisfactory settle- 
ment of the troubles. Turkey seemed 
willing to accept a fair proposition of 
settlement, and the Russian ambassador 
was especially cordial in co-operating 
with Lord Salisbury. 

Government Revolutionized. 

Before the conference assembled, a 
very decided change took place in the 
policy of Turkey. On the 22d of 
December Midhat Pasha was made 
grand vizier. The true meaning of 
this appointment was that Turkey had 
resolved to take her affairs into her 
own hands and to refuse to submit to 
the dictation of the European powers. 
On the 23d the Porte proclaimed the 
new constitution of the Turkish em- 
pire which had been prepared by Mid- 



hat Pasha. This constitution entirely 
revolutionized the Turkish government. 
It provided for a parliament elected by 
the people, and made the sultan a con- 
stitutional instead of an arbitrary sov- 
ereign. The government was to be 
administered by Ministers responsible 
to Parliament, which body was to enact 
the laws necessary for the pacification 
and government of the empire. 

Failure of Conference. 

The conference met on the 23d of 
December, the very day of the promul- 
gation of the constitution. On the 28th 
of December it was resolved to extend 
the armistice to March i, 1877. The 
proclamation of the constitution seemed 
to cut the entire ground from under the 
feet of the conference. The representa- 
tive of the porte maintained that further 
deliberation was unnecessary, since the 
constitution was a sufficient answer tc 
the powers. Nevertheless the ses 
sions were continued, but without ac 
complishing anything. The confer- 
enre demanded that the reforms in the 
Turkish empire should be executed by 
an international commission, having at 
it3 command a special military force, 
composed partly of Europeans and partly 
of Turks, but Turkey refused to accept 
the demand, and it was abandoned. 

Though Turkey was willing to pledge 
herself for the execution of the reforms, 
she steadily refused every material guar- 
antee for the execution of this pledge 
suggested to her. The conference then 
reduced its demands to insisting that 
the Governors of Bosnia and Bulgaria 
should be appointed with the consent 01 
tlie powers, and that the powers should 
be allowed to form an international 
conmiission, which should, however, 



308 



ITAI,Y, GREECE, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



have no military means of executing its 
decrees. On the i8th of January, 1877, 
the porte firmly rejected these demands, 
and the conference came to an inglori- 
ous end. 

During the sessions of the conference 
Roumania became alarmed at the terms 
of the constitution, the first article of 
which declared that the Ottoman em- 
pire, including the privileged provinces, 
forms an indivisible unity from which 
no portion can ever, on any ground, be 
detached, while the seventh article gives 
to the sultan the right of investiture of 
the rulers of the privileged provinces. 
On the 5th of January, 1877, the Rou- 
manian senate passed a resolution de- 
claring that the rights of the princi- 
pality should remain intact, and calling 
upon the government to maintain them 
in a manner worthy of the state. The 
excitement in Roumania was so great 
that in a few days the porte officially 
declared that the constitution was purely 
internal, and did not affect the rights of 
a principality which were guaranteed by 
international treaties. 

A Nation Without Friends. 

The obstinacy of Turkey in refusing 
the demands of the powers lost her the 
few friends she had left in Europe. 
The cause of this obstinacy was the 
Vizier Midhat Pasha, who, losing sight 
of the fact that the Turkish empire 
owed its existence in Europe entirely 
to the mutual jealousy of the great 
powers, haughtily refused to allow any 
interference with its affairs. His impe- 
rious will soon rendered him obnox- 
ious to the sultan, who grew restless 
under the control of the man who had 
already deposed two sultans within a 
year, and who would not hesitate to 



depose another should it suit his pur- 
pose. 

Accordingly on the 5th of February, 
1877, Midhat Pasha was removed from 
his office of vizier and ordered to quit 
Constantinople. He was succeeded by 
Edhem Pasha, who had served as one 
of the members of the conference, and 
who had distinguished himself by his 
bitter opposition to all the proposals of 
the foreign representatives. 

Efforts for Peace. 

Edhem Pasha at once devoted himself 
to the task of making peace with the 
rebellious principalities. He opened 
negotiations with Servia, and by the 
last of February concluded a treaty of 
peace with that principality. By the 
terms of the treaty the Servians were to 
retain their fortresses, were to salute 
the Turkish flag, and were to prevent 
armed bands from crossing the frontier. 
The Turkish troops, on their part, were 
to evacuate the positions held on Ser- 
vian territory. The treaty was ratified 
on the 3d of March, and a week later 
the Turkish forces withdrew from Ser- 
via, relinquishing Alexinatz and Saits- 
char to the Servians. 

Negotiations had been opened with 
Montenegro at the same time that those 
with Servia were begun, but they proved 
more protracted and troublesome. Prince 
Nicholas at first demanded that the 
negotiations should be conducted at 
Vienna ; but the Porte refused this, and 
the prince sent a delegation to Constan- 
tinople. The armistice was extended 
to the 13th of April. The Montenegrin 
demands were, briefly, the cession of 
Nicsics, which had been besieged by 
their forces for several months, the ces- 
sion of a seaport, and such a rectifica- 



ITAI.Y, GREKCE. TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



209 



tion of their frontier as would increase 
their territory a'jout one-half its present 
extent. 

As the Montenegrins held actual 
possession of most of the territory 
demanded by them, they had the ad- 
vantage of the Porte. The latter refused 
to grant any extension of territory, and 
towards the close of March Prince 
Nicholas instructed his representatives 
to abate their demands somewhat, but 
to insist upon the cession of Nicsics. 
On the loth of April the Turkish par- 
liament, to which the matter was re- 
ferred, rejected the demands of Monte- 
negro, and the next day the representa- 
tives of that principaiity were informed 
of this decision, and were told that the 
armistice would not be renewed. Two 
days later the Montenegrin delegates 
set out for home, going by way of 
Odessa- in order to have an interview 
with the czar and the Russian com- 
mander. 

Trying to Gain Time. 

Russia had by this time fully deter- 
mined to take part in the war, but being 
as yet unprepared, endeavored by skillful 
diplomacy to gain time. On the 31st of 
January Prince GortschakofF addressed 
to the Russian representatives at the 
courts of the powers concerned in the 
treaty of Paris a circular, in which he 
related the diplomatic efforts that had 
oeen ni:ide to secure the pacification of 
Turkey, and stated that the czar, before 
determining upon a course for the future, 
wished to know what course would be 
determined upon by the other powers. 
On the 9th of March Turkey met this 
circular by one of her own addressed to 
the guaranteeing powers, stating that 

' the refnrtaqs Droposed bv the conference 
14 



and accepted by the imperial govern- 
ment are already being applied." 

On the 19th of March the Turkish 
parliament was formally opened with 
imposing ceremonies and renewed prom- 
ises of reform. The great powers, 
however, were suspicious of Turkey's 
promises, and were determined to de- 
mand further guarantees. Accordingly 
the Russian, French, German, Austrian 
and Italian ambassadors at London held 
several conferences with lyord Derby, 
the British foreign minister, the result 
of which was the signing, on the 31st of 
March, of a protocol by them in behalf 
of their respective governments. 

Turkish Government Watched. 

This document declared that '^the 
powers proposed to watch carefully, by 
means of their representatives at Con- 
stantinople and their local agents, the 
manner in which the promises of the 
Ottoman government are carried into 
effect; ' ' and in case these promises were 
not faithfully carried out, the powers 
reserved the right of common action 
"to secure the well-being of the Chris- 
tian population and the interests of the 
general peace." Before signing this 
document Count SchouvalofF, the Rus- 
sian ambassador, made a declaration to 
the effect that if the porte showed itself 
ready to disarm, it should send a special 
envoy to St. Petersburg to treat for a 
mutual disarmament. I/Ord Derby, on 
behalf of Great Britain, declared that if 
a reciprocal disarmament and peace did 
not result, the protocol was to be re- 
garded as null and void. 

The answer of the porte to the pro- 
tocol was a defiant circular addressed to 
its representatives abroad, in which, 
while it did not entirely reject the pro- 



2i0 



ITAI.Y, GREKCK, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



tocol, it warmly resented the threat of 
foreign intervention in the internal af- 
fairs of Turkey, repelled Count Schou- 
valofF's suggestion of intervention, and 
declined to send a special envoy to St, 
Petersburg. The circular was dated 
the loth of April. When the Turkish 
ambassador in lyondon delivered this 
circular to Lord Derby on the 12th of 
April, the British foreign minister 
expressed to him his deep regret at 
the course Turkey had seen fit to pur- 
sue, and said he could not see what 
further steps England could take to 
avert the war, which now seemed in- 
evitable. 

Every effort for peace having failed 
through the obstinacy of the porte, 
Russia declared war against Turkey on 
the 24th of April, 1877, an account of 
which is given elsewhere. 

In 1897 the whole civilized world was 
shocked by Turkish atrocities in Arme- 
nia. The slaughter of 40,000 Armenian 
Christians, if not by direct orders from 
the Turkish government, yet certainly 
with permission from those who could 
have put a stop to these inhuman out- 



rages, forms one of the most revolting 
pages of history. England and America 
were aroused by these bloody atrocities, 
which were considered to be quite in 
keeping with the Turkish character and 
methods, and vigorous protests were 
made, both in public meetings and 
through the newspaper press. 

Turkey disavowed responsibility as 
far as possible for these wholesale mur- 
ders, which was only to be expected. It 
was an outbreak of Mohammedan fanati- 
cism, and it was felt that our government 
would be justified in taking the strongest 
measures for the protection of American 
missionaries and their families. Large 
sums of money were raised in England 
and this country for the relief of the 
sufferers. A great public meeting was 
held in Liverpool, which was presided 
over by Mr. Gladstone, who denounced 
with all his burning eloquence the mur- 
ders committed by barbarous Turkey. 
After the crime was ended public indig- 
nation became quiet, and Turkey had 
accomplished her object without being 
called to a solemn account by othei 
nations. 



SPAIN IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 




"PON the return of peace, in 18 15, 
after the Napoleonic wars, Fer- 
dinand VII. was restored to 
the throne of his fathers. 
He at once re-established the Inquisi- 
tion and the convents which had been 
suppressed by the French. Tyranny 
was restored in its most odious form, 
and the Spanish people found that all 
their struggles against Napoleon had 
ended in the loss of their freedom. 

The Spanish colonies in America, 
encouiaged by the example of the United 



States, had renounced their allegiance 
to Spain in 18 10, upon the fall of Fer- 
dinand, and had proclaimed their inde, • 
pendence. Upon his return to his thron.2 
Ferdinand set to work to recover these 
colonies. He made great exertions and 
spent large sums to reconquer them, but 
in the end failed, and the dominion of 
Spain on the American continent came 
to an end. The struggle with the colo- 
nies exhausted the Spanish treasury and 
left the army unpaid and half mutinous 
and the nation discontented. 



ITALY, GREECE, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



211 



The result was a revolution in 1820, 
wliich compelled Ferdinand to abolish 
the Inquisition and the convents, and 
restore the liberal constitution of 18 12. 
The Holy Alliance now intervened, and 
demanded the abolition of this constitu- 
tion and the restoration of absolutism. 
The cortes refused to comply with this 



incline him to a more liberal course, but 
he turned a deaf ear to them and pun- 
ished the liberal leaders that fell into his 
power with savage cruelty. So great 
was the discontent of the Spanish 
people that Ferdinand was only upheld 
on his throne by the French troops, 
who remained in Spain for seven years. 




THE ESCURIAL— THE PALACE 
demand, and Spain was invaded in 1823 
by a French army under the Duke of 
Angouleme. The liberals were defeated 
in every quarter, and Cadiz, their last 
stronghold, was taken in 1823. Ferdi- 
nand VII. was restored to his absolute 
rule, and proceeded to take vengeance 
upon his enemies. 

The French generals endeavored to 



OF THE KINGS OF SPAIN. 

In 1833 Ferdinand died, leaving tw 
daughters, the elder of whom was but 
three years old. In September, 1830. 
he had issued a pragmatic sanction, 
which annulled the law excluding 
women from the Spanish throne. Upon 
his death his brother, Don Carlos, pro- 
duced a paper which he claimed was 
signed by Ferdinand, which revoked 



212 



ITAl,Y, GREECE, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



the pragmatic sanction, and which Don i 
Carlos offered in support of his own 
claim to the crown. 

Spain was at once divided between 
two parties — the liberals, who supported 
the regency of the queen-mother, Chris- 

na of Naples, and the Carlists, or par- 
tisans of Don Carlos. England and 
France favored the former, but the pope 
and the northern powers sustained Don 
Carlos. A civil war ensued, and the 
liberals finally triumphed, and procured 
the acknowledgment of the young queen 
Isabella II. Don Carlos, however, con- 

.nued the war until 1840, when he was 

Anally defeated and forced to abandon 

he struggle. 

Royal Marriages. 

A considerable party desired that the 
• oung queen should marry her cousin, 
he Count of Montemolin, the son and 
heir of Don Carlos, a union which would 
have united all the claims to the crown, 
and have restored peace to Spain. France 
and England, however, opposed this 
union, and Louis Philippe resolved to 
make Queen Isabella's marriage the 
means of strengthening his dynasty. 
He succeeded in inducing her to marry 
her cousin, Don Francisco of Assis, who 
was little better than an idiot, and at the 
same time married his youngest son, the 
Duke of Montpensier, to the Princess 
Maria Louisa, the sister of Queen Isa- 
bella, and who, from her more vigorous 
health, seemed likely to outlive her sis- 
, ter. This cunning scheme, so character- 
istic of the selfish king of the French, 
resulted in more injury than benefit to 
the Orleans monarchy. 

In 1843 Queen Isabella was declared 
of age, and from this time Spain was 
governed as a constitutional state. The 



queen, who was a woman of notoriously 
evil life, took but little part in the gov- 
ernment, which was administered prin- 
cipally by her favorites and a succession 
of popular generals. The result was 
that the kingdom was almost constantly 
in a state of civil war. In 1868 Gonzales 
Bravo became prime minister. He 
caused the arrest and banishment of 
seven of the leading generals of the 
army, and also of the Duke and Duch- 
ess of Montpensier, the latter of whom 
the reader will remember was the sister 
of the queen. The banished generals 
each had adherents in the army, and 
a revolution at once broke out. The 
queen's troops were defeated, and she 
herself was driven out of Spain. She 
took refuge in France. The Bourbon 
dynasty was declared at an end in Spain 
and a provisional government was set 
up in Madrid, with Marshal Serrano 
one of the banished generals, at its head. 

Continued Dissensions. 

The unhappy kingdom was once mor 
divided as to the form of government h 
should adopt. A small, cultivated class 
wished to set up a republic, but the grea, 
body of the nation desired a constitu 
tional monarchy. Don Carlos, a grand- 
son of the queen's uncle of the same 
name, proclaimed himself king as 
Charles VII., and was supported by 
a considerable party. In June, 1870 
Queen Isabella abdicated her crown in 
favor of her son, the Prince of Asturias, 
then eleven years old, and his claims 
were supported by the French govern- 
ment, which hoped through him to 
establish its influence in Spain. The 
Spanish nation, however, refused to 
accept him. The crown was then 
offered to the King of Portugal, who 



ITAIyY, GRKKCK, TURKEY AND SPAIN. 



213 



declined it for both himself and his 
brother. 

General Prim, who had become the 
ruling spirit of the Spanish Govern- 
ment, then selected Prince Frederick, 
of HohenzoUern-Sigmaringen, a distant 
relative of the King of Prussia. The 
invitation was declined by Prince Fred- 
erick in the summer of 1870, and was 
transferred to his younger brother. 
Prince Leopold. The French Govern- 
ment, as we have seen, made this choice 
the pretext for' war with Prussia. Prince 
Leopold, in consequence of this, declined 
the Spanish invitation. 

Deeds of Violence. 

After this the Spanish crown was 
ofifered to Amadeo, Duke of Aosta, the 
second son of Victor Emmanuel, King 
of Italy, and was accepted by him. He 
was formally chosen by the cortes on 
on the 1 6th of December, 1870. A few 
days later he set out for Spain, landing 
at Carthagena. The festivities attend- 
ing his arrival were brought to an end 
by the assassination of General Prim, 
the wisest and best of Spanish statesmen 
of the time, on the 29th of December. 
On the 30th King i\madeo was crowned, 
and gave his consent to a liberal consti- 
tution, which guaranteed civil and reli- 
gious liberty to the nation. 

Amadeo found his throne anything 
but a bed of roses. The liberal party 
desired still great changes, and the ad- 
herents of Don Carlos, supported by the 
constant intrigues of the priests, were 
plotting the overthrow of the liberal 
monarchy. In April, 1872, the Carlists 
rose in open rebellion in the northern 
provinces ; and on the 19th of July in 
the same year a dastardly attempt was 
made to assassinate the king and queen. 



Thoroughly disgusted with his subjects, 
Amadeo resigned his crown on the i ith 
of February, 1873. His abdication was 
followed by the proclamation of a re- 
public, which, in 1875, gave place to a 
monarchy under Alfonso. 

Castelar was made president of the 
new republic, which, a year later, was 
overthrown. Alfonso XII. was pro- 
claimed king December 30, 1874. Te- 
days later the king landed at BarceloPi 
and prepared to enter upon his reigx.. 
The year 1876 was signalized by the enc, 
of the Carlist war and the restoration of 
peace. Alfonso died November 25th, 
1885, and was succeeded by the regent, 
Queen Christina. On the opening of the 
cortes, December ist, 1887, the infant 
King was enthroned, and in a speech 
read on that occasion the queen-regent 
announced that the country was quie\ 
and prosperous. During October, 1888, 
there was a republican outbreak at Sara 
gossa against conservatives ; soon after- 
ward outbreaks occurred at Seville and 
Madrid. The ministry resigned Decem* 
ber 9th, and was reconstitc'^ed by Senoi 
Sagasta. 

Spanish Republic 

In the early part of 1889 amnesty 
was offered to political offenders, and 
efforts were made to suppress discot" 
tent. 

In April, 1 898, war broke out between 
Spain and the United States, in which 
the former was disastrously defeate' 
Her navy was swept from the sea, anc* 
she was compelled to relinquish Cuba, 
Porto Rico and the Philippine Islands. 
The details of the struggle have been 
narrated in the history of the United 
States in the nineteenth century, and 
need not be repeated here. 



CHAPTER XV. 

Canada, Mexico and South America. 



f 



'N 1 79 1 the British pariiament divided 
Canada into two provinces, called 
Upper and Lower Canada, and gave 
to each a legislative council ap- 
pointed by the crown^ and a popular 
issembly chosen by the people. Over 
jach province was placed a governor ap- 
pointed by the crown. In the hope of in- 
roducing the Church of England as the 
eligious establishment of the provinces, 
m area of 3,400,000 acres of the public 
land was set apart for the endowment of 
die clergy. The effort proved a failure, 
and in 1854 the lands were devoted to 
secular purposes, and the idea of estab- 
lishing a state church was abandoned. 

The provinces grew steadily in popu- 
lation and prosperity, and if their ad- 
vance was not as rapid as that of their 
southern neighbor, the United States, 
yet it was as substantial. As the bitter 
feelings engendered by the war died 
away, cordial relations sprang up be- 
tween Canada and the United States, 
and a profitable commerce was inaugu- 
rated between them, and grew steadily 
year by year until it attained its present 
vast proportions. 

The introduction of steamboats upon 
the St. Lawrence and the lakes did 
much to promote the growth of Canada, 
and increased its internal and foreign 
commerce in a marked degree. In 1824 
the Welland canal was begun, and was 
completed in 1829, giving a continuous 
water passage from Lake Ontario to 
Lake Erie. It was followed by the 
Lachine and other canals, all of which 
have been important agents m the 
growth of Canadian commerce. 
214 



In the early part of the nineteenth 
century a bitter dispute arose in Canada 
concerning the proper interpretation of 
the a.ct of parliament for the govern- 
ment of the two provinces. One party 
insisted that Canada was in possession 
of a transcript of the British constitu- 
tion, and that the council, which con- 
stituted the advisers of the governors 
in matters of state, should be responsi- 
ble to the popular assembly. The other 
party maintained that tbff^ council was 
responsible to the governor only, and 
that the assembly had no claim upon it. 
The disputes ran very high, and the 
trouble was increased by the general 
course of the governors of the prov- 
inces, who administered their govern- 
ments in an arbitrary manner, paying 
little attention to the popular assem- 
bly, and utterly disregarding the de- 
mands of the people. 

Canadian Rebellion. 

In Lower Canada the popular dis- 
content was very great, and in 1837 a 
portion of the inhabitants of that prov- 
ince, under the leadership of Louis 
Joseph Papineau, took up arms with 
the avowed purpose of throwing off the 
rule of Great Britain. They were de- 
feated by the government troops in a 
series of engagements, and were at 
length compelled to submit. Papineau 
and the other leaders fled the coun- 
try. In December, 1837, the populai 
party of Upper Canada, indignant at 
the arbitrary measures of Sir Francis 
Head, the governor, rose in rebellion 
under the leadership of William Lyon 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



215 



Mackenzie. The revolt was suppressed 
by the government forces after some 
serious conflicts with the insurgents. 

For some weeks the insurgents had 
possession of Navy Island, situated in 
the Niagara river, just above the falls. 
Considerable sympathy was manifested 
for them by the people of the State of 
New York, and substantial aid was 
rendered them in spite of the efforts of 
the President of the United States and 
the governor of New York to prevent 



moored at her dock. The boat was cap- 
tured after a short struggle, in which 
one American was killed, and was car- 
ried out into the stream and set on fire 
She drifted down to the falls, ano 
plunged over them in a blaze. The 
British Minister at Washington at once 
declared the responsibility of his gov- 
ernment for the capture of the boat, and 
justified it on the ground of self-defence. 
In the meantime the President had 
sent General Wool with a strong force to 




PARLIAMENT HOUSE, OTTAWA. 



it. Navy Island forms a part of Canada, 
and lies near the shore of that country. 
The insurgents in possession of the 
island employed the steamboat Caro- 
line to convey men and provisions 
from the town of Schlosser, on the 
American shore, to the island. 

The British authorities in Canada 
determined to destroy the boat. One 
dark night in December, 1837, a de- 
tachment from Canada was sent to 
Navy Island for this purpose. Not 
finding the Caroline there, they went 
over to Schlosser, where she was 



the Canadian oorder with orders to pre- 
vent any expedition from leaving this 
country to aid the Canadians. He com- 
pelled the force on Navy Island to sur- 
render, but the border war continued un- 
til the close of 1838, when it was ended. 
These outbreaks drew the attention 
of the British government more closely 
to the defective system of government 
in operation in Canada. The people ol 
Canada addressed petitions to the crown, 
praying for a union of the provinces. 
This prayer was granted, and in 1841 
the two provinces were united under 



216 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMBRlCi^ 



one government, which was modeled 
upon the British system, and was in 
every respect a vast improvement upon 
<^e former establishments. The coun- 
Jry was now styled the Province of 
Canada. In 1 849 a general amnesty to 
all who had taken part in the rebellion 
jf 1 837 was passed. 

In 1849 a bill was introduced into 
the Canadian parliament to indemnify 
certain persons for the losses sustained 
by them during the rebellion. This 
measure was bitterly opposed by the 



vaded by the Feniant^ an organization 
of Irishmen dwelling in the United 
States. This insane movement was 
met promptly by the Canadian authori- 
ties, and the President of the United 
States sent General Meade, with a suf- 
ficient force of troops, to the Canadian 
border to arrest the Fenian leaders and 
to -seize their supplies. 

On the 4th of December, 1866, dele- 
gates appointed by the legislative as- 
semblies of Canada, Nova Scotia, and 
New Brunswick met at I/ondon to 







riiittso i V-_''^'?^J' 



people of Montreal, and gave rise to a 
formidable and disgraceful riot, in 
which the parliament was dispersed 
and the parliament house burned down 
by the mob. This riot induced the 
parliament to remove the seat of gov- 
ernment to Toronto for the next two 
years, and to Quebec for the four suc- 
ceeding years. In 1857 Ottawa was 
selected as the permanent seat of gov- 
ernment, and costly public buildings 
were erected there for the use of the 
various departments of the state. 

In the spring of 1 866 Canada was in- 



UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO. 

arrange the terms of a confederation. 



This task was successfully performed, 
and on the 7th of February, 1867, a 
bill was introduced into the British 
parliament creating the union. It passed 
both houses, and on the 29th of March 
received the royal assent. On the 22nd 
of May the queen issued her proclama- 
tion appointing the ist of July, 1867, 
as the day from which the new confed- 
eration should date its existence. 

The new State was styled the Do- 
minion of Canada, and was given the 
right of self-government. The Gov- 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



211 



ernor-General of Canada is appointed 
by the crown, but all the other offices 
are filled by the people or by their 
chosen delegates. Canada is thus prac- 
tically independent of Great Britain, 
though constituting an important part 
of the British empire, and owing alle- 
giance to the British sovereign. 

Purchase of Territory. 

In 1870 Manitoba and the northwest 
territories were purchased from the 
Hudson Bay Company and added to 
the dominion. In 1871 British Colum- 
bia joined the confederation, and in 
1873 Prince Edward's Island did like- 
wise. 

Since the confederation of the prov- 
inces the chief events have been as 
follows : the Red River rebellion, which 
collapsed in August, 1870 ; treaty of 
Washington, 187 1, dealing with fish- 
eries and the mutual use of certain 
canals ; outbreak of half-breeds under 
Ivouis Reil, in March, 1885, resulting 
in the speedy suppression of the rebel- 
lion and Riel's execution ; and the 
treaty for the settlement of the fisheries 
dispute, signed by the British and 
United States representatives February 
IS, 1888. In October, 1891, the Do- 
minion government refused to acqui- 
esce in the copyright treaty between 
England and the United States, claim- 
ing that the treaty was not international. 

On the 29th of July a motion for un- 
restricted reciprocity with the United 
States was rejected after a long debate 
in the house of Commons. 

The Great Canadian Pacific Railroad 
was completed in 1891. Entrance to 
New York was given over the New 
York Central lines. It was universally 



believed that the completion of this 
important railway would have much to 
do with the development of the re- 
sources of Canada, especially the mining 
industries of British Columbia, and this 
has proved true. 

In 1 892 an attempt was made to bring 
about 1 more complete reciprocity be- 
tween Canada and the United States. 
Representatives of both countries were 
appointed to take the subject into con- 
sideration and recommend practical 
methods by which closer commercial 
relations could be established. Unfor- 
tunately the negotiations amounted to 
nothing, and were discontinued in June 
of that year. The subject, however, 
was not allowed to drop, but was 
favorably discussed in a convention at 
Ottawa called in 1893 for the purpose 
of promoting tariff reform. 

Vast Wealth of Mines. 

In January, 1 897, a Toronto syndicate 
purchased the War Eagle mine in Brit- 
ish Columbia for the sum of ;^850,ooo. 
This purchase had much to do with 
stimulating the mining interests of that 
province. Attention was called to the 
great mineral wealth of that section, 
which resulted in large investments on 
the part of Canadian capitalists and 
others in the United States. 

The discovery of gold in the Klon- 
dike region caused a great rush to the 
gold fields, and necessitated special leg- 
islation by the Canadian Parliament ;^br 
the right adjustment of claims and the 
preservation of law and order. During 
the year large sums of gold arrived at 
Victoria, British Columbia, and along 
with them tales of suffering and priva- 
tion endured by many of the miner*. 



218 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



MEXICO IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 




1 b^XlCO has been ihe scene of 
many revolutions, and for 
centuries was in a state of 
almost constant turmoil. 
This can be accounted for by Spanish 
greed and oppression, which the people 
from time to time resisted, being as often 
overcome by superior force after suffer- 
ing many indignities and after convul- 
sions which frequently resulted in great 
loss of life. 

Insurgents Executed. 

The overthrow of the reigning house 
of Spain, and the elevation of Joseph 
Bonaparte to the Spanish throne, caused 
profound discontent in Mexico. All 
classes resented it. It became necessary 
to make certain modifications in the 
government to suit the altered state of 
affairs. On the i6th of September, 
1808, the viceroy, Don Jose de Iturri- 
garay, was arrested and imprisoned on 
suspicion of a design to seize the crown 
of Mexico. This act greatly increased 
the popular discontent, and the aspira- 
tions for independence took, as it were, 
new life from this moment. On the 
15th of September, 18 10, a formidable 
revolt broke out in the province of 
Guanajuato, under the leadership of 
Don Miguel Hidalgo, a priest. It was 
suppressed the next year, and Hidalgo 
and the other leaders were shot. 

This revolt was followed by a guerilla 
warfare of several years, under the lead- 
ership of Morelos, Victoria, Guerrero, 
Bravo, Rayon, and Teran. The patriot 
forces were compelled to cling to the 
mountains, but their unceasing resist- 
ance kept alive the long-cherished hope 
/or independence. It seemed, however, 



that the authority of Spain was fully 
restored, and that the patriot cause was 
hopeless. 

The revolution of 1820 in Spain re- 
vived the enthusiasm of the national 
party in Mexico, and a new leader ap- 
peared. This was Don August! n Itur- 
bide, a native Mexican, who had dis- 
tinguished himself in the civil war as 
an officer in the royalist service. On 
the 24th of February, 1821, he issued a 
proclamation declaring Mexico inde- 
pendent of Spain, and calling upon the 
Mexicans to sustain him. The revolt 
was successful. The whole country ac- 
knowledged his authority, the royal 
government was overthrown, and on 
the 27th of September the city of Mexico 
was surrendered to him by the viceroy, 

A New Emperor. 

A regency was established, and ott 
19th of May, 1822, Iturbide was pro 
claimed Emperor of Mexico by the 
army. This act gave great offence to 
the other patriot leaders, and on the 2d 
of December, Santa Anna, with the sup- 
port of Bravo, Guerrero, and othcs, pro- 
claimed the republic at Vera Cruz. A 
civil war was averted by the abdication 
of Iturbide on the 19th of March, 1823. 
A national congress was at once con- 
vened. Iturbide was condemned to 
exile, and sailed for England in May, 

1823. 

A provisional government was set up, 
and on the 4th of October, 1824, the 
Congress adopted a constitution mod- 
eled upon that of the United States. B\' 
virtue of this instrument Mexico be 
came a republic consisting of ninetecii 
States and five ten itories. General Vic- 




SI^AUGHT^R OF THE MEXICANS BY THE SPANIARDS. 



219 



220 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



toria, one of the popular leaders, was 
chosen president. Iturbide now re- 
turned to attempt the recovery of his 
throne, but was made prisoner, and was 
shot on the 19th of July, 1824. 

President Overthrown. 

In 1828 the election of General Pe- 
draza to the presidency over General 
Guerrero led to a revolt on the part of 
the followers of the latter. The out- 
break was successful. Pedraza was 
overthrown and driven from the coun- 
try, and Guerrero assumed the presi- 
dency on the ist of April, 1829. In the 
same year the United States recognized 
Mexico as an independent republic. In 
July, 1829, a Spanish force landed near 
Tampico to attempt the restoration of 
the rule of Spain. It was compelled to 
surrender on the nth of September. 
The troops were disarmed and sent to 
Havana. 

Mexico, though independent, was not 
destined to enjoy the blessing of a stable 
government. Soon after the surrender 
of the Spaniards, the vice-president, 
General Bustamante, pronounced against 
Guerrero, deposed him, and was himself 
elected president January II, 1830. He 
was succeeded by Pedraza, who three 
months later, was deposed by Santa 
Anna, who became president April i, 
1833. Bustamante and several leading 
men were exiled by the new president. 
Congress now enacted a law abolishing 
the compulsory payment of tithes, and 
it was proposed to confiscate the prop- 
erty of the church and apply it to the 
payment of the national debt. 

These measures led to several out- 
breaks, the result of which was the re- 
peal, in 1835, of the constitution of 
1824, and the change from a confedera- 



tion of states into a consolidated repub- 
lic, with Santa Anna at its head as dic- 
tator, though retaining the title of presi- 
dent. 

Texas, then a state of the republic, 
refused to accept this change, and pro- 
claimed its independence. Santa Anna 
marched against the Texans in 1836, 
but after gaining some success^ was de- 
feated and made prisoner in the battle 
of San Jacinto, April 2 1 , 1836. 

The captivity of Santa Anna brought 
back the reign of anarchy in Mexico. 
Bustamante returned from exile, and on 
the 19th of April, 1837, became presi- 
dent, lyater in the year Santa Anna 
returned to Mexico, and the leal power 
passed into his hands. In March, 1839, 
a new revolution broke out, and Santa 
Anna once more became president. In 
July he was overthrown by General 
Nicolas Bravo, who held the office for 
one week. 

Disorder and Violence. 

A period of confusion followed ; the 
constitution was suspended ; and a dic- 
tatorship, consisting of Santa Anna, 
Bravo and Canalizo, was set up. In 
June, 1 843, a new constitution was pro- 
claimed, and Santa Anna became con- 
stitutional president in 1844. A few 
months later he was driven from power 
by a revolution, and on the 20th of Sep- 
tember, 18^4, Canalizo became presi- 
dent, only to be himself deposed in the 
following December by General Her- 
rera, who was deposed by a new revolu- 
tion on the 30th of 'December, 1845, 
which made General Paredes president. 

During Herrera's administration Mex- 
ico became involved in a quarrel with 
the United States, growing out of the 
annexation of Texas by the latter power. 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



221 



The details of this war have been rela- 
ted in " Great Events of American His- 
tory," in another part of this volume, 
to which the reader is referred. During 
the struggle Santa Anna returned from 
exile, overthrew Paredes, made himself 
president, and took personal command 
of the army. The war resulted in the 
triumph of the x\merican forces, and by 
the treaty of Guadaloupe Hidalgo,signed 
in February, 1848, California and New 
Mexico were ceded to the United States. 

Repeated. Revolutions. 

The result of the war was fatal to 
Santa Anna. He was overthrown, 
driven from the country, and was suc- 
ceeded by Herrera. A series of revolu 
tions followed the war, elevating first 
one leader and then another to the presi- 
dency. On the nth of May, 1861, Be- 
nito Juarez captured the city of Mexico, 
and his authority was generally recog- 
nized throughout the republic. He was 
one of the best of the Mexican presidents, 
and inaugurated a series of useful reforms 
which rendered his administration very 
popular with the mass of the nation. 

Marriage was made a civil contract, 
perpetual monastic vows and ecclesias- 
tical courts were abolished, and the 
church property, which was estimated 
at nearly one-half the real estate of the 
country, was appropriated to the service 
of the state. A little later the union 
between church and state, which had 
existed from the time of the conquest, 
was completely severed. 

These measures, though popular with 
the people, gave great offence to the 
church party, which determined tc de- 
stroy the Juarez government at any cost. 
At this juncture Spain, France and 
England, presented to the Mexican gov- 



ernment a series of claims for losses sus- 
tained by their citizens in that country, 
and failing to obtain any satisfaction 
from the Juarez government, despatched 
a joint expedition to Mexico to enforce 
their demands. Early in December, 
1 861, a Spanish force under General 
Prim occupied Vera Cruz, and in Janii 
ary, 1862, the English and French forces 
arrived. 

The Juarez government now pro- 
ceeded to settle the difficulty by nego- 
tiation, and agreed that the English 
and Spanish claims should be paid by 
turning over to them a certain propor- 
tion of the customs receipts. This ar- 
rangement being satisfactory to Eng- 
land and Spain, their forces evacuated 
Mexico in May, 1862. 

Plotting with the French. 

The church party had seen in the 
presence of the foreign troops in Mexico 
an opportunity for the destruction of 
the Juarez government, and now re- 
solved to put their plan in execution, 
although they knew it involved the loss 
of their country's liberties. They began 
to plot with the French, whose claim 
was the smallest, and induced the French 
emperor to attempt the erection of a 
monarchy in Mexico, which should 
make that country in actual fact a de- 
pendency of France, promising their 
active aid in overcoming the resistance 
of their countrymen. 

Accordingly the French commander 
refused to accept the arrangement which 
had proved satisfactory to England and 
Spain, and on the i6th of April, 1862, 
France declared war against Mexico. 
The French army was reinforced, and 
the advance into the interior was begun. 
Puebla was attacked, but the French 



222 



CANADA, ME^XIdO AND SOtlTH AM^klCA. 



were defeated and forced back to the 
coast. In 1863 the French army was 
strongly reinforced, and siege was laid 
to Puebla, which surrendered to General 
Forey on the 17th of May, after a gal- 
lant defence of three months. 

A number of other successes were 
won by the French, and on the loth of 
June, 1863, they entered the city of 



that Mexico should be a hereditary mon- 
archy under an emperor of the Roman 
Catholic faith. 

The crown was offered to the Austrian 
Archduke Maximilian, and was accepted 
by him. He waived all claim to the 
throne of Austria in the event of the 
death of his brother, the Emperor Fran- 
cis Joseph, and made farewell visits to 




ENTRY OF THE FRENCH INTO THE CITY OF MEXICO. 



Mexico in triumph. Juarez and his 
government withdrew to San lyuis Po- 
tosi. 

The French and the church party at 
once proceeded to cany out their scheme. 
A regency was established on the 24th 
of June, and on the 8th of July an as- 
sembly of notables was held to decide 
upon the future form of government for 
Mexico. On the loth this body declared 



the sovereigns of France, England and 
Belgium, and to the Pope, who gave 
him his special blessing. He sailed for 
Mexico in April, 1864, and on the 28th 
of May landed at Vera Cruz, which was 
held by the French. 

After a short delay there he proceeded 
to the capital, welcomed all along the 
route with great enthusiasm by the 
church party. He made his formal entry 



CANADA, MEi^tlCO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



223 



into the city of Mexico on the 12th of 
June, 1864. One of the first acts of 
Maximilian, who was childless, was to 
adopt as his heir the son of the Emperor 
Iturbide. He addressed himself with 
energy to the task of giving to Mexico 
a good government, and it is exceed- 
ingly probable that had he been able to 
establish his throne he would have done 
more for the country than any of its 
former rulers had accomplished ; but 
from the first he had to encounter the 
hostility of the republican or national 
party, and his failure to restore the se- 
questered estates of the clergy and to 
revive the old connection between 
church and state, soon lost him the sup- 
port of his only partisans ; and he was 
kept on his throne only by the presence 
of the French army. 

The imperial troops drove Juarez and 
his adherents back by degrees, and in 
September, 1865, he reached Bl Paso, 
on the Texan frontier. His forces 
maintained a determined resistance, and 
early in 1866 the tide began to turn in 
their favor. On the 25 th of March they 
captured Chihuahua. 

Protest by Our Government. 

In the meantime the United States, 
appreciating the designs of France, had 
strongly protested against the establish- 
ment of the Mexican empire. At length, 
the Civil War being ended, the American 
government determined to give Juarez 
material aid unless France should with- 
draw her troops and leave the Mexicans 
to settle their own affairs. The French 
government was informed of this deter- 
mination, and at last agreed to withdraw 
its army. Upon reaching this decision, 
the Emperor Napoleon sent General 
Castelnau to the city of Mexico to urge 



Maximilian to abdicate, as he could not 
possibly succeed in holding his throne 
without the aid of France. 

Maximilian refused to entertain the 
idea of abdication, and declined to see 
the French envoy. His ministers sup- 
ported him in his determination. The 
withdrawal of the French army was 
immediately begun, and the emperor 
soon found himself dependent entirely 
upon the support of a few partisans 
whose desperate fortunes were so bound 
up with his own that they could not 
afford to desert him. The last French 
detachment was withdrawn from Mexico 
on the 1 6th of March, 1867. 

Shouts for the Republic. 

The departure of the French was fol- 
lowed by a strong reaction in favor of 
the republic. The forces of Juarez were 
largely augmented, and the emperor, 
thrown upon his own resources, deemed 
it best to leave the city of Mexico, march 
northward, and offer battle to the repub- 
lican army. He reached Queratero at 
the head of 5,000 men, and was at once 
besieged in thst place by a force of 
20,000 men under General Escobedo. 
The place was betrayed by the imperial- 
ist governor of the city, Maximilian was 
made prisoner, and shot on the 19th of 
June, 1867. 

On the 1 6th of July Juarez returned 
to the city of Mexico, and began the 
work of reconstructing the government. 
The constitution was re-established, and 
in 1 87 1 Juarez was again elected presi- 
dent. He died on the i8th of July, 
1872, and was succeeded by the Chief 
Justice, Ivcrdo de Tejada, who was form- 
ally elected president on the 21st of No- 
vember, 1872. He was re-elected in 
1 876, but was soon after overthrown by 



224 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SoUTH AMERICA. 



General Porfirio Diaz and compelled to 
fly to the United States. 

Diaz showed himself to be one of the 
ablest Mexican rulers, and was re-elected 



relations with foreign powers being 
peaceful. So strong was the popular 
feeling in favor of Diaz, and so great 
was the confidence of the nation in kis 












EMPEROR MAXIMILIAN SHOT BY MEXICAN TROOPS. 



in 1884, and again in 1888; and under 
him the position of the republic, with 
regard both to security and development 
of its resources, steadily improved, and 
comparative tranquillity prevailed, the 



wisdom and patriotism, that he was re- 
elected in 1892, and again in 1890. 

An insurrection that threatened to 
plunge the country into anarchy and 
rebellion broke out in 1892. General 




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SECTIONAL VIEW OF A BATTLESHIP, SHOWING THE TURRET 
AND AMMUNITION HOIST 




THOMAS A EDISON EXPERIMENTING IN HIS LABORATORY 




M. GUIGLIELMO MARCONI 

DISCOVERER AND INVENTOR OF THE Vi/IRELES" TELEGRAPH 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



225 



Lorenzo Garcia was killed by his troops 
who joined the rebels under Garza in 



Texas. The band was, however, dis- 
persed and order restored. 



SOUTH AMERICA IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



IN I So/Napoleon declared war against 
Portugal, and sent an army into that 
country. The regent (afterwards 
Joam VI.) and the royal family and court 
at once embarked upon thefleetandsailed 
for Rio de Janeiro. This was a great 
gain for Brazil, and was followed by im- 
portant changes in the government; the 
ports were thrown open to all the world, 
and trade was invited from all nations. 
In 1815, upon the overthrow of Napo- 
leon, Brazil was erected into a kingdom, 
and when Joam VI. came to the throne 
in 18 16 he took the title of King of 
Portugal, Algarve and Brazil. 

He continued to reside in Brazil, and 
so offended his Portuguese subjects. In 
September, 1820, as we have related 
elsewhere, a revolution broke out in 
Portugal, and the Spanish constitution 
was proclaimed. Revolutionary distur- 
bances occurred in Para and Pernam- 
buco, and the king, fearing that the 
movement would involve the whole of 
Brazil, placed himself at the head of it, 
and on the 26th of February, 1821, pro- 
claimed the constitution of Brazil. Soon 
after this he returned to Portugal, leav- 
ing his son. Prince Pedro, as Regent of 
Brazil. He had scarcely sailed when a 
revolutionary movement broke out, in 
April, 1821. Brazil was declared an in- 
dependent empire on the 12th of Octo- 
ber, 1822, and on the ist of December, 
1822, the regent was crowned Emperor 
as Dom Pedro I. A constitution was 
adopted in 1824, and on the 7th of Sep- 
tember, 1825, Portugal acknowledged 
the independence of Brazil. 

15 



In 1826 Joam VI. died, and Dom Pedro 
became King of Portugal . He preferred 
to retain his western empire, and re- 
signed the Portuguese crown to his in- 
fant daughter Dona Maria da Gloria. In 
the same year a war broke out between 
Brazil and the Argentine republic, which 
was seeking to absorb Uruguay. Peace 
was made through the mediation of Eng_ 
land, and Montevideo or Uruguay was 
constituted an independent republic. 

On the 7th of April, 183 1, Pedro I., 
who had been engaged in a long dispute 
with the chamber of deputies, ended 
the quarrel by abdicating his crown in 
favor of his son, Pedro II., the present 
emperor. As the new sovereign was 
but six years old, a council of regency 
administered the government until 1841, 
when Pedro was declared of age, and 
was crowned on the i8th of July. 

The reign of Pedro II. was prosper- 
ous and highly beneficial to his country. 
He proved a liberal and able ruler, and 
spared no pains to advance the civiliza- 
tion and prosperity of Brazil. In 183 1 
a law placing severe restrictions upon 
the slave trade was enacted, and in 1850 
the traffic was finally abolished. In 1852 
Brazil, in alliance with Uruguay and the 
forces of Entre Rios, waged a successfu* 
war against the Argentine Dictator 
Rosas, who was defeated and forced to fly 
to England. In 1895 Brazil, Uruguay 
and the Argentine republic declared war 
against Paraguay, the cause being the 
unprovoked aggressions of lyOpez, the 
Dictator of Paraguay, upon the allied 
states. 



226 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA, 



The war was long and costly, and ended 
only with the death of Lopez, on the 
1st of March, 1871. Brazil entered into 
a separate treaty with Paraguay concern- 
ing boundaries and a war indemnity, 
without consulting her allies. This 
gave great offence to the Argentine re- 
public, and came near leading to a 
war with that country. The difficulty 
was settled in October, 1872, by an 
agreement that the Argentine republic 
should negotiate separately with Para- 
guay, as Brazil had done. In 1871 a 
law was enacted by the Brazilian 
chambers providing for the gradual 
extinction of slavery throughout the 
empire. 

Dom Pedro was deposed in November, 
1889, and took refuge in Europe. Fon- 
seca was made president of the national 
congress. Soon there were serious dis- 
agreements between him and the con- 
gress, and he attempted in 1891 to as- 
sume the dictatorship. The revolution- 



ary spirit again showed itself and in No 
vember Fonseca resigned. 

Then followed a period of constant 
intrigues, ambitious schemes to rule the 
country, and a succession of revolts and 
insurrections that prevented anything 
like a stable government. On the 15th 
of November, 1894, Dr. Prudente Jose 
de Moraes assumed the office of presi- 
dent, and as one of his first political 
acts granted amnesty to those who 
had been leaders in seditious plots. 
The clemency of the government, how- 
ever, did not entirely suppress the spirit 
^f revolt, and the republic continued 
in a state of turmoil and insecurity. 

Attempts were made in November, 

1897, to assassinate the president, and 
martial law was proclaimed. In March, 

1898, Dr. Campos Salles was elected 
president, but so many factions and 
conflicting interests divided the popu- 
lace that hearty and united support of 
the government was not assured. 



HISTORY OF PERU. 



IN 1820 the South American States 
rose in rebellion against Spain, 
and proclaimed themselves inde- 
pendent. Peru was the last to 
take this step. General San Martin, 
who had freed Chili of the Spaniards, 
ente-red Peru at the head of an army of 
Chilians and Buenos Ayreans, seized 
the city of Lima, and drove the Span- 
iards into the interior. On the 28th of 
July, 1 82 1, Peru declared herself inde- 
pendent of Spain, and General San 
Martin was proclaimed protector of the 
republic. Becoming unpopular, he re- 
signed on the 19th of August, 1822, and 
in February, 1824, General Bolivar was 
made dictator. 



On the 9th of Decembei, 1S24, the 
Peruvians inflicted a decisive defeat 
upon the Spaniards in the battle of 
Ayacucho, and in January, 1826, ex- 
pelled them from Callao, their last foot- 
hold in Peru. In 1825 Bolivar resigned 
the dictatorship, but before doing so, 
organized the southern and southeast- 
ern provinces into a separate republic, 
which took the name of Bolivia. 

Although independent, Peru was not 
tranquil. In 1826a revolution occurred, 
and the constitution proclaimed by 
Bolivar was destroyed, and a new one 
adopted. In 1836 President Santa Cruz, 
of Bolivia, entered Peru with an army, 
and proclaimed himself Supreme Pro- 



CANADA, MKXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



227 



tector of the Bolivio-Peruvian confeder- 
ation. The union between the two States 
lasted until 1839. ^ series of deposi- 
tions and civil wars now ensued, but were 
brought to an end in 1844 by General 
Castillo, who made Menendez president. 

Castillo was elected as the successor 
of Menendez, and entered upon his 
oiEce on the ist of April, 1845. He re- 
mained in power until 185 1, and gave 
to Peru the best government it had ever 
known. He was succeeded by General 
Bchenique, who was accused of gross 
frauds in his administration. Castillo 
headed an insurrection, drove Bche- 
nique from power and once more be- 
came master of Peru. Several deter- 
mined efforts to overthrow Castillo's 
government were made, but all failed, 
and he succeeded in holding office until 
the expiration of his term. In 1855 he 
declared slavery abolished in Peru. In 
October, 1862, General San Ramon suc- 
ceeded Castillo as president, but died in 
the following April. General Pezet 
succeeded him. During Pezet's admin- 
istration the Spaniards seized the Chin- 
cha islands, and Peru declared war 
against Spain. 

Peace was made in 1865, Spain re- 
storing the islands, and Peru agreeing 
to pay a war indemnity of $3,000,000. 
This treaty was denounced by the peo- 
ple, and brought on a revolution which 
overthrew Pezet, and made General 
Prado dictator. He concluded an alli- 
ance with Chili in December, 1865, and 



in January, 1866, the two States de- 
clared war against Spain. On the 2d 
of May the Spanish fleet sustained a 
defeat at the hands of the allies, and a few 
days later withdrew from the Peruvian 
waters. On the loth of January, 1868, 
a successful revolution compelled Prado 
to resign his office and retire to Chili. 

On the 28th of July Colonel Balto 
was proclaimed president, but was as- 
sassinated in July, 1872. Peace was 
restored in a few weeks, and on the 2d 
of August Don Manuel Pardo was al- 
most unanimously chosen president. 
He held office until the 2d of August, 
1 876, and his administration was highly 
popular and successful. At length in- 
ternal dissensions arose, a sanguinary 
revolution broke out at lyima, December 
23d, 1 88 1, and Pierolas was proclaimed 
dictator. Soon after this the Chilians 
occupied the town, vacating it October 
23d, 1883. Insurrections and civil dis- 
orders prevailed until 1885, resulting in 
the retirement of Iglesias and Caceres, 
rival presidents, through foreign inter- 
vention. Caceres was elected president 
April 23d, 1886. 

Bermudez was elected president in 
1 890, and a revolutionary attempt near 
lyima to overthrow him was defeated. 
Bermudez died in March, 1894, and in 
August of the same year Caceres was 
again inaugurated president. The conn- 
try remained in an unsettled state and 
was disturbed by repeated revolts and 
uprisings, and chronic turmoil. 



HISTORY OF CHILI. 



HB Spaniards organized Chili as a 
vice-royalty, and divided it into 
thirteen districts. Like all the 
Spanish provinces, it was always mis- 



governed and the people were grossly 
oppressed. In July, 1810, the popular 
discontent broke out into revolution ; 
the Spanish Governor Carrasco was 



228 



CANADA, MKXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA, 



deposed, and the government placed in 
the hands of a "junta." An outward 
loyalty to Spain was maintained, but it 
was the real design of the leaders of the 
movement to break off all connection 
with the mother country. In April, 
1 8 1 1 , the royal troops were attacked by 
the patriots and driven from Santiago. 
General Carrera was appointed by the 
"junta" supreme president of the na- 
tional congress and commander-in-chief 
of the army. In 1 8 1 3 he won two vic- 
tories over the Spanish troops, but the 
latter were largely reinforced, and before 
the close of the year Chili was com- 
pelled to submit once more to the au- 
thority of Spain. 

Spanish Tyranny. 

During the next three years the ty- 
ranny of the Spanish officials was more 
odious than it had been before the out- 
break. The patriots now raised an army 
in the neighboring province of La Plata, 
and made General San Martin its com- 
mander. He marched into Chili, and 
won an important victory over the roy- 
alist forces at Chacabuco on the 12th of 
February, 18 17. A provisional govern- 
ment was set up by the patriots, and Don 
Bernardo O'Higgins was placed at its 
head as supreme dictator. The Span- 
iards now rallied and defeated the 
Chilians with heavy loss at Chaucha- 
rayada, but were themselves utterly 
routed by the patriots at Chilenos 
on the 5th of April, 1818. Not more 
than 500 Spaniards escaped from the 
field. 

This victory entirely destroyed the 
Spanish power in Chili, Peru and Bue- 
nos Ayres, and secured the independ- 
ence of those states. The Spaniards 
retreated to the port of Valdivia, which 



they held until 1820, when they surren- 
dered to the Chilian forces. 

The dictatorship of General O'Hig- 
gins lasted until 1823, when, having 
become unpopular, he was forced to re- 
sign his power. A provisional govern- 
ment of three succeeded him, but gave 
way in the course of a few weeks to 
General Freire as dictator. In 1828 the 
first Chilian constitution was adopted. 
It was revised in 1831-33. 

A Revolt Suppressed. 

Chili has been the most orderly of 
the South American republics, but has 
not entirely escaped revolution. The 
most serious of these outbreaks occurred 
in 185 1 ; one in April and the other in 
September. The latter was the more 
formidable of the two, but both were at 
length suppressed. The September re- 
volt was caused by the effort of General 
De la Cruz to overthrow the president 
of the republic, Don Manuel Montt. It 
cost the government a sacrifice of 4,000 
soldiers for its suppression, and greatly 
injured the prosperity of the country. 
At its close a general amnesty was pro- 
claimed to the insurgents, and President 
Montt applied himself with energy to 
the restoration of the prosperity of the 
country. 

He was re-elected in 1856. His ad- 
ministration was the ablest in the his- 
tory of the republic. It gave to the 
country a well-arranged code of laws, 
established a tribunal of commerce and 
a bank of discount and deposit at Val- 
paraiso, arranged the finances on a se- 
curer basis, and negotiated treaties of 
commerce and friendship with France, 
Sardinia, the United States and Great 
Britain. In 1862 the Araucanians gave 
great trouble to the government. Under 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



229 



the leadership of a Frenchman named 
De Tonniens, they endeavored to throw 
off the authority of Chili and make them- 
selves independent. They were com- 
pelled to submit. 

Coast Blockaded. 

When the war broke out between 
Peru and Spain, in 1864, Chili warmly 
sympathized with her sister republic. 
This sympathy drew upon her the hos- 
tility of Spain, and the next year the 
coast of Chili was blockaded by the 
Spanish fleet. Chili, late in 1865, de- 
clared war against Spain. On the 26th 
of November the Chilian steamer Es- 
meralda captured the Spanish steamer 
Covadonga, with all the correspond- 
ence of the Spanish admiral on board. 
This event so mortified Admiral Pareja 
that he committed suicide. He was suc- 
ceeded by Admiral Nunez. On the 14th 
of January, 1866, Chili entered into an 
alliance with Peru, and on the 7th of 
February the allied fleets defeated a 
Spanish squadron. 

On the 31st of March Admiral Nunez, 
regardless of the protests of all the for- 
eign representatives at that port, bom- 
barded the city of Valparaiso, destroy- 
ing property to the amount of more 
than ten millions of dollars, and demol- 
ishing nearly all the public buildings 
and many private edifices. Not a shot 
was returned from the town. The 
greater part of the loss fell upon the 
foreign residents. In the following 
month the Spanish fleet took its depart- 
ure from the Chilian waters. The 
United States now offered their medi- 
ation between Spain and the allies, and 
on the nth of April, 1871, a treaty 
arranging an armistice and an indefinite 
truce was signed at Washington. 



In 1869 the Araucanians again en- 
deavored to throw off the Chilian rule, 
but in the following year were put down, 
and their country was permanently occu- 
pied by the Chilian forces. From this 
time the history of Chili was compara- 
tively uneventful until 1891, when a 
revolution occurred, resulting in a vic- 
tory for the insurgent forces. In the 
decisive battle 300 of President Balma- 
ceda's forces were defeated with heavy 
loss. An attempt was made at Valpa- 
raiso on May 7th to assassinate the lead- 
ing members of the cabinet. 

Chilian Steamer Seized. 

On the 5th of May the insurgent 
Chilian steamer Itata was seized by 
United States officers at San Diego, 
California ; she escaped, and arriving at 
Iquique, June 4th, was delivered to the 
American warships. The suicide of 
Balmaceda followed his downfall, and a 
provisional Junta was formed. The 
crew of the United States steamer Bal- 
timore having met with outrageous 
treatment by the police of Valparaiso, 
our government promptly demanded an 
apology from Chili. The trouble was 
at length amicably settled. 

On January 3, 1892, the Chilian riot- 
ers were sentenced (some to imprison- 
ment and some to penal servitude), for 
assaulting the sailors of the Baltimore, 
and the President of Chili apologized to 
the United States government. In 
August, 1894, an arbitration commis- 
sion at Washington awarded our gov- 
ernment $240,564 for claims against 
Chili. Erraguriz was elected president 
in July, 1896. In July, .'897, boun- 
dary disputes wilh Argentina were 
referred to the arbitration of Queen. 
Victoria. 



230 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOTJTH AMERICA. 



UNITED STATES OF COLOMBIA. 




'PANISH rule here, as else- 
where, bore very hard upon 
the people, and finally re- 
sulted in revolution. The 
first outbreak was made in 1781, and 
was suppressed. It was followed by 
another unsuccessful attempt in 1795. 
The authority of Spain was not con- 
tested again until 181 1, when the people 
rose in rebellion and drove out the 
Spanish forces. The victories of Boli- 
var established the independence of 
New Granada, and in 18 19 the state be- 
came a member of the republic of Co- 
lombia. This confederation was broken 
up by the withdrawal of Venezuela in 
1829 and Ecuador in 1830. In 1831 
New Granada declared itself an inde- 
pendent republic, and in 1832 adopted 
a constitution. The chief executive 
power was confided to a president, who 
was to be elected for a term of four 
years. From this time until i860 the 
history of the republic was mainly 
peaceful and uneventful. 

Early in i860 a revolution broke out, 
headed by General Mosquera, the chief 
of the liberal party. President Ospina 
was overthrown, and Mosquera seized 
the government. A convention was 
held at Bogota in 1861, and a new re- 
public was organized under the name 
of the United States of Colombia ; a 
constitution was adopted, and Mosquera 
was made dictator. The civil war was 
brought to an end in December, 1862, 
by the submission of the conservative 
party to the new republic. A national 
congress then met at Rio Negro on the 
4th of February, 1863, and Mosquera 
resigned his dictatorial powers to this 
body. 



A new constitution was promulgated 
on the 8th of May, 1863, and subse- 
quently Mosquera was appointed pro- 
visional president, to hold office till 
April I, 1864, when he was to be vsuc- 
ceeded by a president elected by the 
people. The new constitution contained 
provisions confiscating the property of 
the church, and establishing religious 
liberty. These provisions aroused the 
hostility of the priests and their follow- 
ers, who, headed by the Archbishop o^' 
Bogota, threw every obstacle in the wa\ 
of the government. 

These disputes led to an attempt on 
the part of Mosquera, who had again 
been chosen president in 1866, to seize 
the whole power of the government. 
He was defeated and condemned to two 
years of exile. The principles of reli- 
gious liberty and immunity from im- 
prisonment for debt remained undis- 
turbed. In 1875 an outbreak in some 
of the Atlantic states occurred, but was 
put down. In 1876 an unsuccessful 
revolution was begun by the clerical 
party, but was suppressed in the follow- 
ing year. 

In 1886 a fresh constitution wa^ 
adopted, based on that of the United 
States, placing the central authority in 
the strengthened hands of the federal 
government. An insurrection broke out 
in 1885, the government troops were 
defeated, and peace was restored Since 
then the history of the country K^^ been 
uneventful. 

Venezuela remained under Spanish 
rule until the early part of the present 
century. \t warmly opposed the acces- 
sion of Joseph Bonaparte to the Span- 
ish throne; and on the 5 th of July, 181 1, 




SCKNES IN BRITISH GUIANA AND VENEZUELA 



223 



232 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



threw oflf its allegiance to Spain, and 
declared itself independent. In 1812 
the treaty of Victoria restored it to 
Spain. The Spanish rule was hateful 
to the people, and in 18 13 Venezuela 
again revolted under the leadership of 
General Simon Bolivar. A long struggle 
ensued, and in 18 19 the independence 
of the country was practically secured, 
and the republic of Colombia, consist- 
ing of New Granada, Venezuela, and 
Ecuador, was established. The war 
with Spain did not close until 1823, 
but the result was assured from the 
time of the formation of the republic. 
In 1 82 1 a constitution was adopted. In 
1829 Venezuela withdrew from the 
Colombian republic, and became an in- 
dependent state. In 1830 Ecuador be- 
came a separate republic. The dissolu- 
tion of the old confederation was peace- 
ful and amicable. For the next fifteen 
years the history of Venezuela is peace- 
ful and uneventful. In 1846 General 
Monagas became president. A period 
of constant civil war now set in, and 
lasted until June, 1863, when the acces- 
sion of General Falcon to the presi- 
dency restored tranquillity to the coun- 
try. Several years of peace followed, 
and then a new revolution broke out 
and resulted in the establishment of a 
provisional government under Guzman 
Blanco, in April, 1869. The next year 
he convened a congress at Valencia, 
and compelled that body to appoint 



him provisional president of the repub 
lie, with extraordinary powers. In 
February, 1873, he was elected by the 
people for a term of four years. 

There has never been any agreement 
between Great Britain and Venezuela 
as to the boundary line between the lat- 
ter country and British Guiana. The 
Venezuelan Government represented to 
ours at Washington that Greg "Britain 
was disposed to make encroachments 
and claim territory- c.iat did not by right 
belong to her. 

In December, 1895, President Cleve- 
land sent a strong message to Congress 
on this subject, in which he took occa- 
sion to assert in very plain terms the 
Monroe Doctrine. The message was 
received with great favor, and a com- 
mission of investigation was appointed 
by Congress. For a time there was 
loud talk of war between Great Britain 
and the United States, but wiser coun- 
sels prevailed, and Great Britain fur- 
nished the commission with all the in- 
formation in its possession, which could 
be of service in reaching a just and 
equitable conclusion. 

In 1899 a commission to determine 
the boundary line between Venezuela 
and British Guiana assembled in Paris. 
Ex-President Harrison was counsel for 
the Republic of Venezuela, and the com- 
mission reached an agreement which 
was recommended to the two govern- 
ments. 



BRITISH 

"CiXCEPT for two short periods the 

£^ settlements composing British 

^ " Guiana were held by the 

Dutch down to 1803, when they were 

taken possession of by the English. 



GUIANA. 

One of them, Berbice, was at first ad- 
ministered as a distinct colony, but in 
1 83 1 it was incorporated with the rest 
of British Guiana. 

During slave-holding time sugar- 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH ivMERICA. 



233 



planting brought some degree of pros- 
perity to these colonies; but their pro- 
ductiveness in this respect was very 
sensibly crippled by the abolition of 
slavery, which deprived them of their 
supplies of the requisite kind of labor 
for the plantations. Since that event 
coffee and cotton have almost entirely 
ceased to be grown; and the cultiva- 
tion of beet-root for sugar caused a 



very serious crisis in Guiana cane- 

planting. 

British and Dutch Guiana, however, 
still shows signs of vitality. The cane- 
sugar industry, if not reviving, is at least 
not retrograding, whilst gold-mining is 
a decidedly progressive industry. Ex- 
cept for gold-mining, which, however, 
remains stationary, French Guiana is 
in a hopelessly deplorable condition. 



HISTORY OF BOLIVIA. 




['FTER the revolution of 1820 it 
became independent of Spam. 
In 1825 it was erected into 
an independent republic by General 
Simon Bolivar, and was named Bolivia 
in honor of him. A national conven- 
tion was assembled, and General Boli- 
var was requested to prepare a constitu- 
tion. General Sucre was chosen pres- 
ident, and continued in office until 
1828, when he was overthrown and ex- 
pelled from Bolivia by General Gamarra. 
Shortly after this he was assassinated. 
Sucre was succeeded by General Blanco, 
who, a few months later, was over- 
thrown and slain in a revolution hea led 
by General Balibian. 

In 1829 Mariscal Santa Cruz was 
elected president. He held office until 
February, 1839. In ^^36 he became 
the head of the state in Peru, styling 
himself the Supreme Protector of the 
Bolivio-Periivian confederation. This 
union between the two states was broken 
in 1839 by the overthrow of Santa Cruz 
by a new revolution. A period of con- 
fusion and civil war followed in Bolivia. 
In 1858 Dr. Linares became president, 
and ruled with dictatorial power. He 
was overthrown in 186 1, and Acha was 
named provisional president. In De- 



cember, 1864, General Melgarejo headed 
a new revolution, and in February, 1865, 
defeated the government forces and 
became president. General Belzu at- 
tempted to overturn him, but was de- 
feated and killed. Another revolt was 
put down in January, 1 866. 

In that year Bolivia joined the alli- 
ance of Peru, Ecuador and Chili against 
Spain. In March, 1867, a large district 
in the northern part of the republic was 
added to Brazil. In December a formi- 
dable revolution, having for its object 
the restoration of Acha to the presi- 
dency, broke out. It was put down 
early in 1868. In February, 1869, Mel- 
garejo, with the unanimous consent of 
the national congress, declared himself 
dictator. In May he restored the con- 
stitution, but continued to exercise his 
dictatorial powers. In October a new 
revolution broke out under the leader- 
ship of A. Morales. The outbreak was 
put down, but was renewed in July, 
1870, only to be stamped out again. In 
1871 a successful revolution drove Mel- 
garejo out of the country, and Morales 
became president, for one year. In No- 
vember Melgarejo was assassinated m 
Lima, by his son-in law. 

Morales survived him a little more 



234 



CANADA, MKXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



than a year, and was murdered by his 
son-in-law on the 27th of November, 
1872. In May, 1873, Don Adolfo Bal- 
livian became president of the republic. 
Ill health soon compelled him to with- 
draw from public life, and Dr. Tomas 
Frias was appointed to succeed him, in 
February, 1874. On the 14th of the 
same month General Ballivian died. 
His death was followed by a series of 
revolutionary disturbances, which were 
not finally crushed until April, 1875. 

Bolivia is naturally one of the richest 
countries of South America, but its 
great mountain chains cut it off from 
all communication with the sea or the 
rest of the continent on the western 
side, except by the tedious and expen- 
sive process of mule transport across 
the mountains. On the eastern side 
this obstacle to the progress of the re- 
public does not exist. The Madeira 
river drains a large portion of the re- 
public, receives the waters of the greater 
number of its streams, and finally empties 
into the Amazon. For about 1 50 miles it 
is obstructed by rapids. Below the rapids 



it is navigable to the Amazon, whicl 
river gives ready access to the sea. 

In 1872 it was resolved to build a 
railway around these rapids, and to 
bring Bolivia into direct communica- 
tion with the rest of the world. In 
1876 Bolivia joined Peru in a war 
against Chili. In 1879 Bolivia was 
swept by a revolution ; Diaz, at that 
time president, was deposed and com- 
pelled to flee, and Campero was elected 
to be his successor. Peace was estab- 
lished with Chili, and the conditions 
were finally settled in December, 1883. 
In August, 1888, Aniceto Arce, presi- 
dent, suppressed a revolution and re- 
stored peace. 

In 1892 an insurrection by General 
Camacho was suppressed and Baptista 
was declared president. An ultimatum 
was addressed to Peru demanding satis- 
faction within twenty-four hours for in- 
vasion of territory. The Bolivian Min- 
ister was recalled, and finally the dis- 
pute was referred to arbitration. On 
the 20th of August, 1896, Alonso as- 
sumed the presidency. 



ARGENTINE REPUBLIC. 



IN 1776 the viceroyalty of Buenos 
Ayres was created. It embraced 
the countries now known as the 
Argentine republic, Bolivia, Uru- 
guay, and Paraguay. In 1806, Spain 
being at war with Great Britain, a small 
British force captured Buenos Ayres 
and Montevideo, but was soon driven 
out by the inhabitants. Another effort 
was made by a stronger British force to 
capture Buenos Ayres in 1807, but was 
repulsed. 

In 1 8 10 Buenos Ayres threw off the 
Spanish yoke, and proclaimed its inde- 



pendence. The war was decided m 
1 812 by the surrender of the Spanish 
forces at Montevideo. In January, 181 3, 
a "sovereign assembly" was convened 
at Tucuman, then the capital of Buenos 
Ayres, and the administration of the 
government was confided to it. The 
independence of the republic being 
established, an army was sent into 
Chili, under General San Martin, and 
aided the Chilians in driving the Span- 
iards from that province. Peru next 
assisted, and the independence of that 
country was secured in 1821. 



CANADA, MEXICO AND SOUTH AMERICA. 



235 



In i8i6 the new republic took the 
name of "The United Provinces of La 
Plata," and in 1 8 17 General Puyerredon 
was made supreme dictator. Somewhat 
later the city of Buenos Ayres was 
made the capital of the republic. In 
1820 the dictatorship was abolished, 
and a democratic form of government 
was instituted, with General Rodigruez 
at its head. 

Peace was made with Brazil in 1828, 
through the mediation of England, and 
the independence of the republic of 
Uruguay was recognized by La Plata. 
In 1 83 1 the Argentine republic was 
formed by the confederation of the prov- 
inces of Buenos Ayres, Corrientes, En- 
tre-Rios, and Santa F6. A little later 
some of the other provinces joined the 
union. This was followed by efforts of 
some of the leading o'fficers of the army 
to overthrow the republic and seize the 
supreme power. 

Made Dictator. 

This unsettled state of affairs con- 
tinued until 1835, when Rosas, who 
had been chosen president in 1833, was 
made dictator. He held office until 
1 8 5 2, and during this period governed the 
republic with firmness and sternness. He 
made repeated efforts to force Paraguay 
and Uruguay to join the Argentine con- 
federation. These efforts involved him 
in a quarrel with Brazil, which was also 
seeking to get possession of Uruguay. 

In September, 1852, a levolution 
broke out in the province of Buenos 
Ayres, which withdrew from the con- 
federation and established a government 
of its own. This act led to repeated 
quarrels and conflicts between the Ar- 
gentine confederation and Buenos Ayres. 
On the 17th of December, 1871, the 



Argentine troops were defeated by the 
forces of Buenos Ayres under General 
Mitre. The Argentine confederation 
was now remodeled, with Buenos Ayres 
as the leading state. The city of Buenos 
Ayres was made the capital of the re- 
public, a constitution was adopted, and 
General Mitre was chosen president. 
In 1865 the Argentine republic de- 
clared war against Paraguay, and en- 
tered into an offensive and defensive alli- 
ance with Brazil and Uruguay. The 
struggle resulted in the utter over- 
throw of Paraguay, the aggressions of 
which state provoked the war in the 
year 1870. 

Numerous Outbreaks. 

The alliance of the Argentine con- 
federation with Brazil and Uruguay 
gave great offence to certain parties in 
the republic, and led to several out- 
breaks. These were suppressed. The 
peace of 1870 was followed by a formi- 
dable rebellion in Entre-Rios, which 
lasted a year, and was put down only 
at the cost of an immense number of 
lives. The revolt was renewed in 1 873, 
but was suppressed in the course of a 
few months. 

In 1874 the contest over the presi- 
dential election plunged the country 
into a new civil war, which lasted 
several months and caused much suffer- 
ing. It was settled by the acknow- ' 
ledgment of the president elected by 
the people. On June 1 3th, 1 886, Juarez 
Celman was elected president. Since 
then the great material progress of the 
country has been accompanied by an 
equally remarkable movement in favor 
of stability of government. The policy 
of the government toward agricultural 
immigrants is highly liberal. 



CHAPTER XVL 

Asia and Africa in the Nineteenth Century. 



TT^HINA and Japan have occupied 
I Vr^ a large share of public attention 

xJg _^ during the century, and both 
have undergone important 
changes. This is all the more remark- 
able from the fact that they have re- 
mained in a stereotyped state for ages, 
and gave no signs of progress until 
within a comparatively recent period. 

Towards the end of the seventeenth 
century the Chinese government, while 
refusing to Great Britain, as a Euro- 
pean power, permission to trade with 
the empire, granted that privilege to 
the British East India Company. This 
company conducted the trade with 
China until 1834, when its charter ex- 
pired. The British government then 
sent Lord Napier to superintend the 
trade with China, but he was refused 
permission to communicate with the 
imperial viceroy at Canton on terms of 
equality. He endeavored to force his 
way to Canton with two frigates, but 
after a spirited engagement with the ' 
forts at the Bogue, September nth, 
1834, withdrew to Macao, where he 
died about a month later. After this the 
trade between the British merchants 
and the Chinese was carried on for 
several years without the superintend- 
ence of the British officials. One of the 
principal articles of this traffic was 
opium, of which large quantities were 
sold yearly in China by British mer- 
chants. 

The imperial government at first tol- 
erated this trade, but, at length, becom- 
ing alarmed by the fearful evils which 
the use of opium was fastening upon the 
236 



people of China, endeavored to put a^ 
stop to it. In the autumn of 1837 Cap- 
tain Elliot, the English representative 
at Canton, was ordered by an imperial 
decree to send away the opium ships 
and discontinue the trade in that article. 
This command was disregarded and the 
trade went on. In the early part of 
1839 the imperial Viceroy Lin, acting 
under the orders of his government, 
seized and destroyed all the opium on 
hand at Canton, to the value of $10,- 
000,000. An illicit trade in opium at 
once sprang up, and was resented by 
the Chinese Government, which de- 
clared all commercial relations with 
Great Britain at an end. 

Famous Opium War. 

This led to the opium war, which is 
the most prominent event of the century 
in the history of China. The result was 
that China was forced to surrender her 
exclusiveness, and enter into more inti- 
mate commercial relations with Europe. 
The war was brought to an end by the 
treaty of Nankin, in August, 1842. The 
island of Hong Kong was ceded to the 
British, and the ports of Canton, Amoy, 
Foochoo, Ningpo and Shanghai were 
thrown open to the trade of the worla, 
and made the official residences of Eu- 
ropean consuls. China was also com- 
pelled to pay to Great Britain an indem- 
nity of $21,000,000. In 1842 Caleb 
Cushing, who had been sent out by the 
United States to China, arrived in that 
country and readily negotiated a com- 
mercial treaty between the two coun- 
tries, July 3, 1844. This was foUowec^ 



ASIA AND AFRICA IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



23t 



by a treaty with France, signed October 

23, 1844- 

The Chinese government never meant 
to observe these treaties in good faith, 
and its treatment of the foreigners with- 
in its dominions was at all times marked 
by deceit and an ill- concealed hostility. 
This feeling led to constant disputes be- 



France had experienced similar 
wrongs at the hands of the Chinese, and 
made common cause with England. The 
two powers now resolved to force China 
to a settlement, and in 1857 sent a joint 
expedition to that country. Canton was 
bombarded by the Anglo-French fleet 
on the 28th of December, and the next 




VIEW OF VICTORIA— HONG KONG. 



tween the imperial authorities and the 
foreign consuls and merchants. In Oc- 
tober, 1856, matters were brought to a 
crisis by the seizure of the Arrow, a 
British vessel built in China, by the 
Chinese officials. This act led to a de- 
sultory war between China and Great 
Britain, which lasted several years, and 
in which the Chinese were. a.s a rule, 
the winners. 



day was occupied by the English and 
French land forces, which numbered 
less than 6,000 men. The viceroy Yeh 
was captured, but the Chinese Govern- 
ment endeavored to offset this reverse by 
degrading Yeh and appointing his suc- 
cessor. Russia and the United States now 
i joined England and France in endea- 
i voring to force China to negotiate more 
1 liberal treaties with the western powers. 



238 



ASIA ANb AFRICA IN THE NINKTBKNTH CENTURY. 



The action of the Chinese Govern- 
ment was unsatisfactory, and the allied 
forces attacked and captured the forts 
at the mouth of the Pei-ho, and pushed 
on to Tien-tsin, fifty miles above the 
mouth of the river. The Chinese Gov- 
ernment now yielded, and entered into 
treaties with Great Britain, France, 
Russia and the United States, which 
stipulated for the residence of foreign 
ministers at Pekin, for the opening of 
several ports in addition to those named 
in the treaty of Nankin, for travel and 
trade under certain conditions in the 
whole empire, for the free navigation of 
the Yangste-kiang river, and the settle- 
ment of the transit-dues question. Great 
Britain was paid an indemnity of five 
and-a-half million dollars, and France 
a smaller sum. 

British Navy Defeated. 

China endeavored as usual to evade 
this treaty, and the imperial authori- 
ties exerted themselves by prescribing 
a most unusual route for them, and im- 
posing various and vexatious delays 
upon them, to prevent the foreign min- 
isters from reaching Pekin. The Bri- 
tish minister thereupon ordered Ad- 
miral Hope to force the passage of the 
Pei-ho. That officer attempted to ex- 
ecute his orders, but was driven back 
with great loss by the forts at the mouth 
of the river. The British and French 
ministers then withdrew to Shanghai 
to await the instructions of their re- 
spective governments. The American 
.minister, Mr. Ward, concluded to ac- 
cept the Chinese programme, and sub- 
mitting to many inconveniences and 
indignities, at length reached Pekin. 
He was denied an interview with the 
emperor, except upon conditions de- 



grading to himself and his country, 
and returned in disgust to Shanghai, 
where he joined his European col- 
leagues. 

England and France resented the bad 
faith of China by renewing the war 
with that country. A joint expedition 
was sent against the Chinese capital. 
The Pei-lorts were taken August 2ist, 
i860, and Tien-tsin was occupied Au- 
gust 24th. The Chinese officials endea- 
vored to stay the progress of the allies by 
negotiation, but their design being un- 
derstood, the Anglo-French forces 
pushed on, and on the 6th of October 
arrived before Pekin. The operations 
against the city were conducted with 
vigor; the emperor's "summer palace," 
a magnificent structure, was plundered 
and burned, and on the 13th of October 
one of the gates of the city was surren- 
dered to the allies. 

The imperial government was now 
forced to yield, and the treaties with 
France and England were renewed and 
ratified. The allies then withdrew to 
the coast. Since that time the policy 
of China has been to keep faith with 
the western powers. 

Great Rebellion. 

During all this time China had been 
torn by a rebellion of unusual magni- 
ture. This was the Taiping rebellion, 
which broke out in the southern pro- 
vinces of the empire in 1850. At first 
the rebels were successful, and overran 
a large part of southern China. The 
war lasted until 1864, when the last body 
of rebels was dispersed and the impe- 
rial authority restored. In 1857 the 
Mohammedans of Yunnan rose in rebel- 
lion, and were for a time victorious. This 
revolt extended over a period of fifteen 



ASIA AND AFRICA m THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



23& 



years, but was suppressed in 1872. A 
second Mohammedan rebellion broke 
out in the north-western part of the em- 
pire in 1862. It was suppressed in 1873. 
In 1 87 1 China became involved in a 
quarrel with Russia, and was obliged to 
cede to that power the district of Kulja 
j,nd the whole of the basin of the Hi, a 



the various European powers atd to the 
United States. iVt its head was Anson 
Burlingame, formerly minister from the 
United States to China. " It had its 
origin in the desire of the government 
to demonstrate to western .powers its 
friendliness, and to forestall demands ol 
an extreme character which it antici- 




TNTERIOR OE A CHINESE TEMPLE, SHOWrNG THEIR IDOLS, 



region embracing an area of about 600,- 
000 square miles, and containing a pop- 
ulation of 2,000,000 people.' In 1861 
the Emperor Hieng-fun, who had suc- 
ceeded the Emperor Tau-Kwang, in 
1856, died, and his son T'oung-che came 
to the throne. He was but five years 
old at the time. In 1 873 he was declared 
of age and assumed the government. 

In the autumn of 1867 an embassy 
was sent by the Chinese government to 



pated would be made during the revision 
of the treaties of 1858 then about to 
take place. Its chief seized the oppor- 
tunity to place before the world the in- 
dications of a marked change of policy 
on the part of the government, and to 
demonstrate that the old system of re- 
course to local authorities for the redress 
of grievances should be abandoned in 
favor of representation to the imperial 
authorities at Pekin. The facts of his 



240 



ASIA AND AFRICA IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



(Burlingame's) appointment to repre- 
sent China, and of his being accredited 
to western states on terms of equality, 
afforded an indication of the marvelous 
change which had ensued since the war, 
and a more complete justification of the 
wisdom of the allies in insisting upon 
residence at the capital." 

Oold-Blooded Massacre. 

In 1870 the Chinese attacked the 
French consulate at Tien-tsin and mas- 
sacred the consul, vice-consul, the inter- 
preter of the French legation at Pekin 
and his wife, a Catholic priest, nine sis- 
ters of charity, and some others. The 
Frence consulate, the cathedral and 
the missionary hospital were destroyed. 
The outbreak was severely punished 
by the Chinese government, and an 
apology was made to France. 

In 1875 the Emperor Kwang-liu, the 
reigning sovereign (1878), succeeded to 
the throne. On the 30th of June, 1876, 
the first line of railway in China, from 
Shanghai to Woosung, a distance of 
eleven miles, was opened. It was built 
by an English company. 

Several outbreaks occurred during 
1 89 1 , and riotous demonstrations against 
missionaries and mission stations aroused 
the indignation of Christian nations. 
A combined protest against these perse- 
cutions were made to the Chinese gov- 
ernment by the ministers of foreign 
countries resident in China. Thereupon 
the government greatly increased the 
severitiy of its measures against crimi- 
nals who had been abusing foreigners, 
and determined to use all its power for 
the protection of the foreign residents 
of the empire. This had the inten^'ed 
'jffect. 

In 1 894 war broke out between China 



and Japan. Japan claimed the right to 
protect her subjects in Corea. Corea, 
although an independent kingdom hav- 
ing its own emperor, was to all intents 
and purposes a part of China, and all 
attempts on the part of Japan to extend 
her influence in Corea were strenuously 
resisted. 

On the 30tli of June, 1894, the King 
of Corea renounced all subjection to 
China, and called on the Japanese for 
help. The demands of Japan, for ex- 
tensive reforms, and for the observance 
of a treaty made in 1885, were opposed 
by China, and hostilities immediately 
began. A British despatch boat, con- 
veying Chinese troops, was attacked by 
Japanese warships, sunk off Asan, and 
many were killed. In July, the Japan- 
ese, under Gen. Oshima, gained impor- 
tant victories. In August, the Chinese 
made a formal declaration of war. 

Great Battle of Yalu. 

In September, the Chinese Emperor 
transmitted a circular to the great 
powers justifying the position of China 
in the pending struggle. A great naval 
battle at the mouth of Yalu river on 
September 17th resulted in terrible 
slaughter, and the destruction of eight 
Chinese vessels. This was the turning 
point of the conflict, and Japanese suc- 
cesses followed in quick succession both 
on land and sea. In short, the wonderful 
vigor and military prowess of Japan sur- 
prised the world, and, in the contest with 
China, she was completely successful. 

On the 17th of April, 1895, a peace 
treaty was signed, which assured the in- 
dependence of Corea, the retention by 
Japan of conquered places, and a heavy 
indemnity for the expenses of the war. 
But later, the ministers of Russia, Ger- 



ASIA AND AFRICA IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



241 



many and France protested against tfie 
annexation of Chinese territory to the 
Japanese Empire, and Japan was cheated 
out of a large part of what her victories 
had gained. 

Since this war with Japan the pro- 



gress of events in China has been com- 
paratively uneventful, the latest inter- 
national transactions being concessions 
made to Russia and Great Britain, both 
of which powers are anxious to extend 
their dominions in the East. 



JAPAN IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



J* OR ages Japan maintained a policy 
of utter seclusion from the rest of 
the world, and the vessels of for- 
eign nations were not allowed to enter 
ner ports. It is marvelous that an em- 
pire, so long isolated and dead to both 
hemispheres, should have been so com- 
pletely transformed, showing as great 
eagerness to gain the front ranks of civ- 
ilized and enlightened nations, as before 
she exhibited in secluding herself from 
their touch and influence. 

Towards the middle of the nineteenth 
century European and American ves- 
sels began to frequent the Japanese 
waters, and after the settlement of Cali- 
fornia American whalers pursued their 
trade regularly in the home waters of 
the empire. Many of these were wrecked 
on the coast of Japan, and their crews 
were treated with great harshness by 
the native authorities. In order to put 
a stop to this, and to establish friendly 
relations with the empire, the United 
States government, in 1852, despatched 
an expedition under the command of 
Commodore Matthew C. Perry. 

The American commander was in- 
structed to demand protection for Amer- 
ican seamen wrecked on the Japanese 
coast, and to effect a treaty of commerce 
and good will with the imperial gov- 
ernment In July, 1853, he entered the 
bay of \ edo with four ships of war, and 
"^elivere^ to the Japanese authorities a 

16 



letter from the President of the United 
States, setting forth the demands and 
wishes of his government. He then 
sailed for China. In February, 1854, 
he returned with seven ships of war, 
and anchored within a few miles of 
Yedo. He managed by his skillful and 
judicious efforts to induce the shogun, 
in other words the military governor of 
the Eastern provinces, sometimes styled 
tycoon, to enter into the desired treaty, 
which was sigued at Kanagawa on the 
31st of March, 1854, and which opened 
the ports of Shimoda and Hakodate or 
Hokodadi to foreign commerce, and 
made them places of consular residence. 

In September a British squadron, un- 
der Sir James Stirling, entered the har- 
bor of Nagasaki and concluded a treaty 
with the shogun, by which Hakodate 
and Nagasaki were thrown open to for- 
eign commerce. The Russians and 
Dutch then made similar treaties with 
the shogun. On the 17th of June, 1857, 
Mr. Harris, the United States consul to 
Japan, made a still more advantageous 
treaty with the shogun, by which the 
harbor of Nagasaki was also opened to 
American commerce. 

In 1858, in spite of the opposition of 
the Japanese, Mr. Harris proceeded to 
Yedo, and concluded a third treaty still 
more advantageous to the United States. 
During the same year Lord Elgin, es- 
corted by a British, squadron, reached 



242 



ASIA AND AFRICA IN 1-HB NINETKENTH CENTURY. 



Yedo and negotiated a treaty between 
Great Britain and Jaj^an, by which it 
was agreed that the ports of Hakodate, 
Kanagawa and Nagasaki, should be 
opened to British subjects after July i, 
1859. "The arrival of Commodore Perry 



the mikado as the spiritual ruler of th( 
empire who did not concern him sell 
with its temporal affairs. The shogun 
on his part encouraged this belief, and 
signed the treaties without referring 
them to the mikado or asking his con- 




was the beginning of the intercourse of 
Japan with the nations of America and 
Europe, an intercourse which has en- 
tirely changed the destiny of the em- 
pire. 

All the foreigners made "Lne mistake 
of regarding the shogun as the rightful 
Emperor of Japan. They looked upon 



INTERIOR OF A JAPANESE THEATRE. 

sent to their signature. I'his act wa? 
looked upon by the Japanese as a fresli 
usurpation of power on the part of the 
shogun, and aroused a strong reaction 
in favor of the mikado. The nation 
was opposed to the violation by the sho 
gun of the traditional policy of non 
intercourse with foreigners, and thd 



ASIA AND AFRICA IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



243 



country resounded with the cry, " Honor 
the mikado and expel the barbarian." 
The shogun was regarded as a traitor, 
and the cause of the mikado was greatly 
strengthened. 

In 1858 the shogun died, and the 
prime minister li, a man of great ability 
and unscrupulous character, became re- 
gent He set aside the true successor, 
and bestowed the shogunate upon the 
infant Prince of Kii, but kept the power 
in his own hands. This arbitrary act 
aroused a strong opposition to him 
which he suppressed by imprisoning and 
executing the leaders of the movement. 
In 1859 he despatched an embassy to 
the United States without consulting 
the mikado, and so increased the hatred 
of the people for him. On the 23d oi 
March, 1 860, he was assassinated m open 
daylight in the streets of Yedo. 



Firing on Ships- 
The party of the mikado now grew with 
wonderful rapidity, and the shogun's 
followers, seeing the steady drift ol 
popular sentiment, sought to regain 
their lost ground by trying^ to Dersnade 
the foreigners to close the ports and leave 
Japan, but without success. About this 
time the forces of the Prince of Choshm 
(Nogato), acting under orders of the 
mikado, fired upon the ships of^ the 
United States, France, Great Britain 
and the Netherlands. This act was pun- 
ished by the treaty powers shortly after, 
by sending a combined squadron to Shi- 
monosek, and capturing that port after 
a severe bombardment. Japan was com- 
pelled to pay an indemnity of $3^(^00, 
000. This victory opened the eyes of 
the Japanese to the power of the for- 
eigners, and made them more cautious 
in their conduct towards them. 



Though the Prince of Choshin had 
obeyed the mikado in firing upon the 
foreign vessels, he had disobeyed the 
shogun, and the latter, in 1866, inarched 
to punish him for his disobedience. 
The forces of the shogun were armed 
and disciplined in the old Japanese 
style ; those of the Prince of Choshin ■ 
were armed with European rifles and 
artillery, and had been disciplined by 
Dutch officers. A campaign of three 
months ensued, and resulted in the 
overwhelming defeat of the shogun, 
who, worn out with mortification at his 
failure, and with disease, died on the 
19th of September, 1866. He was suc- 
ceeded by Keiki, the last of the shoguns. 
The mikado's party now proceeded 
to bolder acts, and in October, 1867, 
urged the mikado to abolish the sho- 
gunate and resume the government of 
the empire. This proposal received so 
much support among the most power- 
ful princes and nobles of Japan, that on 
the 9th of November, 1867, Keiki re^ 
signed the shogunate. 



Radical Changes. 

This was a great gain, but it was not 
all the mikado's party desired. They 
determined to go further and restore 
the government to the basis on which 
it had existed prior to a. d. 1200. On 
the 3d of January, 1868, they seized the 
palace, drove out the nobles, and created 
a government under which the highest 
offices were filled by the ku£^e, or court 
nobles of the imperial family, those of 
the next order by the daimios or cour_ 
tiers, and those of the third order by 
men selected from the samurai. This 
arrangement threw the whole power of 
the state into the hands of the Satsum? 
Choshin, Tosa, and Hizen clans. 



244 



ASIA AND AFRICA IN THK NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



The ex-shogun was greatly displeased 
with this arrangement, and took up 
arms to regain his lost power. He was 
defeated in a three days' battle, and fled 
to Yedo in an American steamer. See- 
ing that further resistance was hopeless, 
he surrendered to the imperial forces, 
declared his resolution never again to 
oppose the will of the mikado, and re- 
tired to private life. This submission 
completely re-established the authority 
of the mikado throughout the empire, 
and gave peace to the country. 

Adopting New Ideas, 

Up to this time the party of the mi- 
kado had been the bitterest opponents 
of the treaties negotiated by the shogun 
with the foreign powers. There were 
a few among them who had profoundly 
studied the question, and had seen the 
folly of their country in holding itself 
aloof from the rest of the world. These 
now set to work to promote the inter- | 
course of Japan with the treaty powers, I 
and found this no difficult task, as the { 
leaders of the imperial party had by 1 
this time become convinced of the im- 
mense superiority of the foreign over 
the native system of war. They also 
feared that the foreign powers would 
compel the empire by force to observe 
the treaties made with the shogun, and 
knew that Japan was in no condition to 
offer a successful resistance. 

They accordingly invited the repre- 
sentatives of the foreign powers to a 
':onference at Kioto. Many of the court 
nobles had never seen a foreigner, and 
upon beholding them at the conference 
at once abandoned the prejudices they 
had cherished against them. The treaties 
were cordially renewed, the foreign 
powers recognized the mikado as the 



only rightful sovereign of Japan, and 
the foundations were laid upon which 
have been built up the intimate and 
cordial relations which now exist be- 
tween Japan and the states of Europe 
and America. Foreign ideas and cus- 
toms from this time made their way 
steadily into the empire, and were rap- 
idly adopted by the Japanese. Since 
1 868 the character of Japanese civiliza- 
tion has undergone a profound change. 
The government, the army and navy, 
and the finances are administered upon 
3 European basis; the European dress 
is driving out the old native costume ; 
and large numbers of young men des- 
tined for the public service are sent to 
the schools of Europe and the United 
States to be trained in the learning and 
civilization of the western world. In 
all these measures the young Emperor 
Mutsuhito (the reigning mikado), who 
came to the throne in 1867, has taken 
an active part, and has constantly en- 
deavored to promote the civilization of 
his country and to render more inti- 
mate its intercourse with the v^stern 
nations. 

Feudal System Destroyed. 

The changes which took place in the 
internal government of the empire after 
the revolution of 1 868 were very rapid. 
In 1 87 1 the emporer abolished the titles 
of kuge and daimio (court and territorial 
noble), and replaced them by that of 
kuazokiL (noble families). This decree 
deprived the great nobles of their terri- 
torial fiefs, which were reclaimed by the 
crown, and at one blow destroyed the 
feudal system of Japan. In the same 
year, in order to place himself more di- 
rectly at the head of the new state of 
affairs, the emperor removed his capital 



ASIA AND AFRICA IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



24f) 



from the old sacred city of Kioto to the 
great city of Yedo, the name of which 
was changed to Tokio (western capital). 
The government granted to the deposed 
daimios one-tenth of their former in- 
comes on condition of residing perma- 
nently at Tokio. In December, 1871, 
an embassy was sent to the nations of 
Europe and America. Each was visited 
in succession, and new treaties of com- 
merce and friendship were negotiated. 

In 1876 the empire took part in the 
International Centennial Exhibition, 
held at Philadelphia, in the United 
States, and gave unmistakable evidence 
in its superb display of its success in 
the new career upon which it has en- 
tered. 

The completion of the translation of 
the Bible into Japanese was celebrated 
February 3, 1888. On February 11, 



1889, a new constitution for the empire 
was promulgated by the Mikado at 
Tokio. Houses of lords and commons 
were established, and religious liberty 
and general freedom were granted to all 
persons, one of the many evidences of 
the enlightened policy which of late has 
distinguished the government of the 
country. New commercial treaties were 
desired with the European powers, who 
hesitated to grant the request ; one with 
the United States was promptly signed. 
No Oriental realm has made more rapid 
strides in the last quarter of a century 
than Japan. 

The most important events in Japan 
during the century were connected 
with her war against China in 1894, a 
full account of which appears in the 
history of that empire and need not be 
repeated here. 



REPUBLICS IN SOUTH AFRICA. 




NH of the earliest settlements in 
South Africa was that of the 
Dutch at the Cape of Good 
Hope. In 1806 Great Britain 
acquired their domain, following which 
the Dutch emigrated in large numbers, 
moving north and east. They acquired 
by force of arms from the Zulus the 
country known as Natal, where they 
settled. The number of the Boers, as 
they were called, who left the British 
colonies was about 10,000. They or- 
ganized a government, and 'n 1854 the 
British guaranteed them ( jmplete in- 
dependence. 

The Boers also established a republic 
known as the Transvaal, the independ- 
ence of which was acknowledged in 
1852. Here they have remained until 
the present time. They have had the 



name of being very exclusive and re- 
fusing rights to foreigners who wished 
to enter their country. In 1887 the 
British attempted to take the country, 
and for a while occupied it. In 1880 
the Transvaal Boers threw off the Bri- 
tish yoke and re-established the repub- 
lic, after a conflict with the British, in 
which the latter were defeated with 
great loss. 

Early in 1 896, a British company, with 
possessions bordering on the Transvaal, 
attempted to conquer the Boers. In this 
attempt they were led by Dr. Jameson, 
but his forces were signally defeated. 
This disaster caused excitement through- 
out England, especially as Germany ex- 
pressed its sympathy with the Boers. 

The state has immense latent wealth 
in its minerals, for, in addition to the 



246 



ASIA AND AFRICA IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 



numerous gold-fields, the deposits of sil- 
ver, copper, and lead, iron, coal, cobalt, 
and other metals and minerals, are suf- 
ficent to show that nature has favored 
the Transvaal beyond all African states. 
The country is rich in corn and pasture 
land. The climate is, as a rule, healthy, 
and in some parts exceptionally bracing. 
The number of English-speaking resi- 
dents is fast increasing on account of 
immigration. 

In October, 1899, war broke out be- 
tween the Transvaal and Great Britain, 
the latter nation claiming that rights 
guaranteed by treaty to the subjects of 
other nations had been denied, and 
foreigners were the victims of high- 
handed oppression. Several bloody bat- 
tles were fought between the Boers and 
the English troops. 

Republic of Liberia. 

L/iberia is a small republican state of 
West Africa, and occupies a part of 
the coast of North Guinea. lycngth, 
600 miles ; breadth interiorward, 50 
miles. Monrovia is its capital, at the 
mouth of St. Paul's River. The prin- 
cipal exports are coffee, sugar, palm-oil> 



camphor, indigo, ivory, and gold-dust. 
The first settlement was formed by free 
negro colonists from the United States, 
at Cape Mesurado, in 1820. The colony 
became an independent republic in 1847. 
The constitution and government are 
based upon the model of those of the 
United States. 

The Congo Free State has sprung out 
of the discoveries of Stanley and the 
explorations of the International Asso- 
ciation, founded at Brussels for the 
opening up to civilization of the Congo 
and its tributaries. Its autonomy was 
recognized during 1884 and 1885 by the 
leading powers of Europe, and by the 
United States, conditioned upon its 
maintaining the principles of free trade. 
There are twelve territorial divisions, 
the capital being Boma. 

The central government is at Brussels, 
and consists of the king of the Bel- 
gians as sovereign, and three depart- 
mental chiefs. On the Congo there is 
an Administrator-General and several 
European administrators of stations and 
districts. The rest of West Africa is 
variously "protected" by England, 
France, Germany, and Portugal. 



PART III. 



Famous Explorations and Discoveries. 



CHAPTER XVII. 
Voyages in the Polar World. 



IN the year 1829 Captain John Ross, 
with his nephew James, having 
been furnished with sufficient 
funds by a wealthy distiller named 
Felix Booth, of London, undertook a 
private expedition of discovery in a 
small vessel called the Victory. Ross 
proceeded down Prince Regent's Inlet 
to the Gulf of Boothia, and wintered 
on the eastern side of a land named by 
him Boothia Felix. In the course of 
exploring excursions during the sum- 
mer months James Ross crossed the 
land and discovered the position of the 
north magnetic pole on the western side 
of it, on June i, 1831. He also discov- 
ered a land to the westward of Boothia 
which he named King William Land, 
and the northern shore of which he 
examined. 

The most northern point, opposite 
the magnetic pole, was called Cape 
Felix, and thence the coast trended 
south-west to Victory Point. James 
Ross was at Cape Felix on May 29, 1830. 
The Rosses never could get their little 
\essel out of its winter quarters. They 
passed three winters there, and then fell 
back on the stores at Fury Beach, where 
they passed their fourth winter of 1832- 
53. Eventually they were picked up by 



a wlialer in Barrow Strait, and brought 
home. 

Great anxiety was naturally felt at 
their prolonged absence, and in 1833, 
Sir George Back, with Dr. Richard King 
as a companion, set out by land in 
search of the missing explorers. Win- 
tering at the Great Slave Lake, he left 
Fort Reliance on June 7, 1834, and de- 
scended the Great Fish River, which is 
obstructed by many falls in the course 
of a rapid and tortuous course of 530 
miles. The mouth was reached, when 
the want of supplies obliged them to 
return. In 1836 Sir George Back was 
sent, at the suggestion of the Royal 
Geographical Society, to proceed to Re- 
pulse Bay in his ship, the Terror, and 
then to cross an assumed isthmus and 
examine the coast-line thence to the 
mouth of the Great Fish River ; but the 
ship was obliged to winter in the drift- 
ing pack, and was brought back across 
the Atlantic in a sinking condition on 
account of damage caused by the ice. 

The tracing of the polar shores of 
America was completed by the Hud- 
son's Bay Company's servants. In June 
1837 Messrs. Simpson and Dease left 
Chippewyan, reached the mouth of the 
Mackenzie, and connected that position 

247 



248 



VOYAGES IN THE POI.AR WORLD. 



with point Barrow, which had been 
discovered by the Blossom in 1826. 

In 1839 Simpson passed Cape Turn- 
again of Franklin, tracing the coast 
eastward so as to connect with Back's 
work at the mouth of the Great Fish 
River. He landed at Montreal Island 
in the mouth of that river, and then 
advanced eastward as far as Castor and 
Pollux river, his farthest eastern point. 
On his return he travelled along the 
north side of the channel, which is in 
fact the south shore of the King Wil- 
liam Island discovered by James Ross. 
The south-western point of this Island 
was named Cape Herschel, and there 
jimpson built a cairn on August 26, 

1839 

Dr. Rae's Discoveries. 

Very little more remained to be done 
in order to complete the delineation of 
the northern shores of the American 
continent. This was entrusted to Dr. 
John Rae, a Hudson's Bay factor, in 
1846. He went in boats to Repulse 
Bay, where he wintered in a stone hut 
nearly on the Arctic Circle ; and he and 
six Orkney men maintained themselves 
on the deer they shot. During the 
spring of 1 847 Dr. Rae explored on foot 
the shores of a great gulf having 700 
miles of coast-line. He thus connected 
the work of Parry, at the mouth of Fury 
and Hecla Strait, with the work of Ross 
on the coast of Boothia, proving that 
Boothia was part of the American con- 
tinent. 

. While the English were thus working 
hard to solve some of the geographical 
problems relating to Arctic America, 
the Russians were similarly engaged in 
Siberia. In 1821 Lieutenant Anjou 
made a complete ' survey of the New 
Siberia Islands, and came to the con- 



clusion that it was not possible to ad- 
vance far from them in a northerly 
direction, owing to the thinness of the 
ice and to open water within 20 or 30 
miles. 

Baron Wrangell prosecuted similar 
investigations from the mouth of the 
Kolyma between 1820 and 1823. He 
made four journeys with dog sledges, 
exploring the coast between Cape Tchel- 
agskoi and the Kolyma, and making 
attempts to extend his journeys to some 
distance from the land. He was always 
stopped by thin ice, and he received 
tidings from a native chief of the exis- 
tence of land at a distance of several 
leagues to the northward. 

In 1843 Middendorf was sent to ex- 
plore the region which terminates in 
Cape Tchelyuskin. He reached the 
cape in the height of the short summer, 
whence he saw open water and no ice 
blink in any direction. The whole 
arctic shore of Siberia had now beer 
explored and delineated, but no vessel 
had yet rounded the extreme northern 
point, by sailing from the mouth of the 
Yenisei to that of the Lena. When 
that feat was achieved the problem of 
the north-east passage would be solved, 

Story of Franklin. 

The success of Sir James Ross's Ant- 
arctic expedition and the completion of 
the northern coast-line of America by 
the Hudson's Bay Company's servants 
gave rise in 1845 to a fresh attempt to 
make the passage from Lancaster Sound 
to Behring Strait. The story of this 
unhappy expedition of Sir John Frank- 
lin, in the Erebus and Terror, is one of 
the most thrilling in Arctic exploration. 

To understand clearly the nature of 
the obstacle which finally stopped Sir 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



249 



John Franklin, and which also stopped 
Sir Edward Parry in his first voyage, it 
is necessary to note that westward of 
Melville and Baring Islands, northward 
of the western part of the American 
coast, and northward of the channel 
leading from Smith Sound, there is a 
vast unknown space, the ice which en- 
cumbers it never having been traversed 
by any ship. All navigators who have 
skirted along its edge describe the stu- 
pendous thickness and massive propor- 
tions of the vast flows with which it is 
packed. 

This accumulation of ice of enormous 
thickness, to which Sir George Nares 
has given the name of a " Palseocrystic 
Sea," arises from the absence of direct 
communication between this portion of 
the north polar region and the warm 
waters of the Atlantic and Pacific. 
Behring Strait is the only vent in a 
south-westerly direction, and that chan- 
nel is so shallow that the heavy ice 
grounds outside it. In other direc- 
tions the channels leading to Baffin's 
Bay are narrow and tortuous. In one 
place only is there a wide and straight 
lead. The heavy polar ice flows south- 
east between Melville and Baring Is- 
lands, down what is now called M'Clin- 
tock Channel, and impinges on the 
north-west coast of the King William 
Land discovered by James Ross. 

The Expedition Halted. 

It was this branch from the palaeo- 
crystic sea which finally stopped the 
progress of Franklin's expedition. On 
leaving the winter-quarters at Beechey 
Island in 1846, Franklin found a chan- 
nel leading south, along the western 
shore of the land of North Somerset 
discovered by Parry in 18 19. If he 



could reach the channel on the Ameri- 
can coast, he knew that he would be able 
to make his way along to Behring 
Strait. This channel leading south, 
now called Peel Sound, pointed directly 
to the south. He sailed down it towards 
King William Island, with land on both 
sides. 

But directly they passed the southern 
point of the western land, and were no 
longer shielded by it, the great palseo- 
crystic stream from Melville Island was 
fallen in with, pressing on King William 
Island. It was impassable. The only 
possibility of progress would have been 
by rounding the eastern side of King 
William Island, but its insularity was 
then unknown. 

Anxiety for Franklin. 

It was not until 1848 that anxiety 
began to be felt about the Franklin ex- 
pedition. In the spring of that year Sir 
James Ross was sent with two ships, the 
Enterprise and Investigator, by way of 
lyancaster Sound. He wintered at Leo- 
pold Harbor, near the north-east point 
of North Devon. In the spring he made 
a long sledge journey with Lieutenant 
M'Clintock along the northern and west 
ern coasts of North Somerset. 

On the return of the Ross expedition 
without any tidings, the country became 
thoroughly alarmed. An extensive plan 
of search was organized — the Enterprise 
and Investigator under CoUison and 
M'Clure proceeding by Behring Strait 
while the Assistance and Resolute with 
two steam tenders, the Pioneer and In- 
trepid, sailed May 3, 1850, to renew the 
search by Barrow Strait, under Captain 
Austin. Two brigs, the Lady Franklin 
and Sophia, under Captain Penny, a 
very energetic and able whaling captain, 



250 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



were sent by the same route. He had 
with him Dr. Sutherland, a naturalist, 
who did much valuable scientific work. 

Found His Winter Quarters. 

Austin and Penny entered Barrow 
Strait, and Franklin's winter quarters 
of 1845-46 was discovered at Beechey 
Island ; but there was no record of any 
kind indicating- the direction taken by 
the ships. Stopped by the ice, Austin's 
expedition wintered (1850-51) in the 
pack off Griffith Island, and Penny found 
refuge in a harbor on the south coast of 
Cornwallis Island. Austin, who had 
been with Parry during his third voyage, 
was an admirable organizer. His ar- 
rangements for passing the winter were 
carefully thought out and answered per- 
fectly. In concert with Penny he 
planned a thorough and extensivesystem 
of search by means of sledge travelling 
in the spring; and Lieutenant M'Clin- 
tock superintended every minute de- 
tail of this part of the work with un- 
failing forethought and consummate 
skill. 

Penny undertook the search by Wel- 
lington Channel. M'Clintock advanced 
to Melville Island, marching over 770 
miles in eighty-one days ; Captain Om- 
manuey and Sherard Osborn passed 
southward and discovered Prince of 
Wales Island. Lieutenant Brown exam- 
ined the western shore of Peel Sound. 
The search was exhaustive ; but, except 
the winter quarters at Beechey Island, 
no record, no sign was discovered. 

The absence of any record made Cap- 
tain Austin doubt whether Franklin had 
ever gone beyond Beechey Island. So 
he also examined the entrance of Jones 
Sound, the next inlet from Baffin's Bay 
Qorth of Lancaster Sound, on his way 



home, and returned to England in the 
autumn of 1 85 1 . This was a thoroughly 
well-conducted expedition — especially 
as regards the sledge travelling, which 
M' Clintock brought to great perfection. 
So far as the search for Franklin -vas 
concerned, nothing remained to be done 
west or north of Barrow Strait. 

In 185 1 the Prince Albert schooner 
was sent out by Lady Franklin, unde 
Captain Kennedy, with Lieutenant Bel- 
lot of the French navy as second. They 
wintered on the east coast of North 
Somerset, and in the spring of 1852 the 
gallant Frenchman, in the course of a 
long sledging journey, discovered Bellot 
Strait separating North Somerset from 
Boothia — this proving that the Boothia 
coast facing the strait was the northern 
extremity of the continent of America. 

Three Traveling Parties. 

The Enterprise and Investigator sailed 
from England in January, 1850, but ac- 
cidentally parted company before they 
reached Behring Strait. On May 6, 
185 1, the Enterprise passed the strait, 
and rounded Point Barrow on the 25th. 
Collinson then made his way up the 
narrow Prince of Wales Strait, between 
Baring and Prince Albert Island, and 
reached Princess Royal Islands, where 
M'Clure had been the previous year. 
Returning southwards, the Enterprise 
wintered in a sound in Prince Albert 
Island. Three travelling parties were 
dispatched in the spring of 1852 — one 
to trace Prince Albert Island in a south- 
erly direction, while the others explored 
Prince of Wales Strait, one of them 
reaching Melville Island. 

In September, 1852, the ship was free, 
and Collinson pressed eastward along the 
coast of North America, reaching Cam- 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



251 



bridge Bay September 26th, where the 
second winter was passed. In the 
spring he examined the shores of Vic- 
toria Land. He was within a few miles 
of Point Victory, where the fate of 
Franklin would have been ascertained. 
The Enterprise again put to sea on 
August 5, 1853, ^iid returned westward 
along the American coast, until she was 
stopped by ice and obliged to pass a 
third winter at Camden Bay. In 1854 
this most remarkable voyage was com- 
pleted, and Captain Collinson brought 
the Enterprise back to England. 

Discovered North- West Passage. 

Meanwhile M'Clure, in the Investi- 
gator, had passed the winter of 1850-51 
at the Princess Royal Islands, only 
thirty miles from Barrow Strait. In 
October M'Clure ascended a hill whence 
he could see the frozen surface of Barrow 
Strait, which was navigated by Parry 
in 1819-20. Thus, like the survivors of 
Franklin's crews when they reached 
Cape Herschel, M'Clure discovered a 
north-west passage. It was impossible 
to reach it, for the branch of the palaeo- 
crystic ice which stopped Franklin off 
King William Land was athwart their 
northward course. 

So as soon as he was free in 185 1, 
M'Clure turned southwards, round the 
southern extreme of Baring Island, 
and commenced to force a passage to the 
northward between the western shore of 
that land and the enormous fields of ice 
which pressed upon it. The cliffs rose 
up like walls on one side, while on the 
other the stupendous ice of the palaso- 
crystic sea rose from the water to a level 
with the Investigator's lower yards. 

After many hair-breath escapes Mc- 
Clure took refuge in a bay on the ! 



northern shore of Bank's Land, which 
he named "The Bay of God's Mercy." 
Here the Investigator remained, never 
to move again. After the winter of 
1851-52 M'Clure made a journey across 
the ice to Melville Island, and left a 
record at Parry's winter harbor. Abund- 
ant supplies of musk ox were fortun- 
ately obtained, but a third winter had 
to be faced. In the spring of 1853 
M'Clure was preparing to abandon the 
ship with all hands, and attempt, like 
Franklin's crews, to reach the American 
coast. But succor providentially ar- 
rived in time. 

The Hudson's Bay Company assisted 
in the search for Franklin. In 1848 Sir 
John Richardson and Dr. Rae examined 
the American coast from the mouth of 
the Mackenzie to that of the Copper- 
mine. In 1849 and 1850 Rae continued 
the search ; and by a long sledge journey 
in the spring of 185 1, and a boat voyage 
in the summer, he examined the shores 
of Wollaston and Victoria Lands, which 
were afterwards explored by Captain 
Collinson in the Enterprise. 

New Expedition. 

In 1852 the British Government re- 
solved to dispatch another expedition 
by Lancaster Sound. Austin's four 
vessels were recommissioned, and the 
North Star was sent out as a depot ship 
to Beechey Island. Sir Edward Belcher 
commanded the Assistance, with the 
Pioneer under Sherard Osborn as steam 
tender. He went up Wellington Chan- - 
nel to Northumberland Bay, where he 
wintered, passing a second winter lower 
down in Wellington Channel, and then 
abandoning his ships and coming home 
in 1854. But Sherard Osborn and Com- 
mander Richards did good work. I'hey 



252 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORI.D. 



made sledge journeys to Melville Island 
and thus discovered the northern side 
of the Parry group. Captain Kellett 
received command of the Resolute, with 
M'Clintock in the steam tender In- 
trepid. 

Among Kellett's officers were the best 
of Austin's sledge travellers, M'Clin- 
tock, Mecham, and Vesey Hamilton, so 
that good work was sure to be done. 
George Nares, the future leader of the 
expedition of 1874-75, was also on board 
the Resolute. Kellett passed onwards 
to the westward and passed the winter 
of 1852-53 at Melville Island. Dur- 
ing the autumn Mecham discovered 
M' Clure's record, and the safety of her 
crew was consequently assured, for it 
was only necessary to send a message 
across the strait between two fixed posi- 
tions. This service was performed by 
L/ieutenant Pirn early in the following 
spring. 

The officers and crew of the Investi- 
gator, led by M'Clure, arrived safely on 
board the Resolute on June 17, 1853, 
and they reached England in the fol- 
lowing year. They not only discovered 
but traversed a north-west passage, 
though not in the same ship, and partly 
by travelling over ice. For this great 
feat M'Clure received the honor of 
knighthood — a reward of fifty thousand 
dollars being voted to himself, the other 
officers, and the crew, by a vote of the 
House of Commons. 

Long Sledge Journey. 

The travelling parties of Kellett's ex- 
pedition, led by M'Clintock, Mecham 
and Vesey Hamilton, completed the 
discovery of the northern and western 
sides of Melville Island, and the whole 
outline of the large Island of Prince 



Patrick, still further to the westward. 
M'Clintock was away from the ship 
with his sledge party for one hundred 
and five days and travelled over 1,328 
miles. Mecham was away ninety-four 
days and travelled over 1,163 miles. 
Sherard Osborn, in 1853, was away 
ninety-seven days and travelled over 
935 miles. The Resolute was obliged 
to winter in the pack in 1853-54, and 
in the spring of 1854 Mecham made 
a most remarkable journey in the 
hope of obtaining news of Captain Col- 
linson at the Princess Royal Islands. 
Leaving the ship on April 3d, he was 
absent seventy days, out of which there 
were sixty-one and a half days travel- 
ling. The distance gone over was 1,336 
statute miles. The average rate of the 
homeward journey was twenty-three 
and a half miles a day, the average time 
of travelling each day nine hours tweu" 
ty-five minutes. This journey is with- 
out parallel in arctic records. 

Ships Abandoned. 

Fearing detention for another winter, 
Sir Edward Belcher ordered all the 
ships to be abandoned in the ice, the 
officers and crews being taken home in 
the North Star, and in the Phoenix and 
Talbot which had come out from Eng- 
land to communicate. They reached 
home in October, 1854. In 1852 Captain 
Inglefield, R.N., had made a voyage up 
Baffin's Bay in the Isabel as far as the 
entrance of Smith Sound. In 1853 and 
1854 he came out in the Phoenix to 
communicate with the North Star at 
Beechey Island. 

The drift of the Resolute was a re- 
markable proof of the direction of the 
current out of Barrow Strait. She was 
abandoned on May 14, 1854. On Sep- 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



253 



tember lo, 1855, an American whaler 
sighted the Resolute in 6']'^ North 
latitude, about twenty miles from Cape 
Mercy, in Davis Strait. She was 
brought into an American port, and 
eventually presented to the British Gov- 
ernment. She had drifted nearly a 
thousand miles. 

In 1853 Dr. Rae was employed to con- 



in April and May. He succeeded in 
connecting the discoveries of Simpson 
with those of James Ross, and thus 
established the fact that King- William 
Land was an island. 

Rae also brought home tidings and 
relics of Franklin's expedition gathered 
from the Eskimo; and this led to the 
expedition of M'Clintock in the Fox in 




REI,ICS OP franklin' 

nect a few points which would quite 
complete the examination of the coast 
of America, and establish the insularity 
of King William lyaud. He went up 
Chesterfield Inlet and the River Ouoich 
for a considerable distance, wintering 
with eight men at Repulse Bay in a 
snow house.- Venison and fish were 
abundant. In 1854 he set out on a 
journey which occupied fifty-six days 



8 POI.AR EJXPEDITION. 

search of Franklin. While M' Clintock 
was prosecuting his exhausting search 
over part of the west coast of Boothia, 
the whole of the shores of King Wil- 
liam Island, the mouth of the Great 
Fish River, and Montreal Island, Allen 
Young completed the discovery of the 
southern side of Prince of Wales Island. 
The Fox returned to England in the 
autumn of 1859. 



254 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



The catastrophe of Sir John Frank- 
lin's expedition led to 7,000 miles of 
coast line being discovered, and to a 
vast extent of unknown country being 
explored, securing very considerable 
additions to geographical knowledge. 
Much attention was also given to the 
collection of information, and the scien- 
tific results of the various search expe- 
ditions were considerable. 

The catastrophe also afforded a warn- 
ing which would render any similar dis- 
aster quite inexcusable. If arrange- 
ments are always carefully made for a 
retreat beforehand, if a depot ship is 
always left within reach of the advanc- 
ing expedition as well as of the outer 
world, and if there is annual communi- 
cation, with positive rules for depositing 
records, no such catastrophe can ever 
happen again. 

The Search for Franklin. 

The American nation was first led 
to take an interest in polar research 
through a very noble and generous feel- 
ing of sympathy for Franklin and his 
brave companions. Mr. Grinnell, of 
New York, gave practical expression to 
this feeling. In 1850 he equipped two 
vessels, the Advance and Rescue, to aid 
in the search, commanded by Lieuten- 
ants De Haven and Grifiith, and accom- 
panied by Dr. Kane. They reached 
Beechey Island on August 27, 1850, and 
assisted in the examination of Frank- 
lin's winter quarters, but returned with- 
out wintering. 

I In 1853 Dr. Kane, in the little brig 
Advance of 120 tons, undertook to 
lead an American expedition up Smith 
Sound, the most northern outlet from 
Bafiin's Bay. The Advance reached 
Smith Sound on August 7, 1853, but 



was stopped by ice only seventeen miles 
from the entrance. He described the 
coast as consisting of precipitous cliffs, 
800 to 1200 feet high, and at their base 
there was a belt of ice about eighteen 
feet thick, resting on the beach. Dr. 
Kane adopted the Danish name of ' ' ice- 
foot ' ' {is fod) for this permanent frozen 
ridge. He named the place of his 
winter-quarters Van Rensselaer Harbor. 

Immense Glacier. 

In the spring some interesting work 
was done. A great glacier was dis- 
covered and named the Humboldt 
glacier, with a sea face forty-five miles 
long. Dr. Kane's steward, Morton, 
crossed the foot of this glacier with a 
team of dogs, and reached a point of 
land beyond named Cape Constitution. 
But sickness and want of means pre- 
vented much from being done by travel- 
ling parties. Scurvy attacked the whole 
party during the second winter, al- 
though the Eskimo supplied them with 
fresh meat and were true friends in 
need. On May 17, 1855, Dr. Kane 
abandoned the brig, and reached the 
Danish settlement of Upernivik on Au- 
gust 6th. Lieutenant Hartstene, who 
was sent out to search for Kane, reached 
Van Rensselaer Harbor after he had 
gone, but took the retreating crew on 
board on his return voyage. 

On July 10, i860, Dr. Hayes, who 
had served with Kane, sailed from Bos- 
ton for Smith Sound, in the schooner 
United States, of 1 30 tons and a crew of 
fifteen men. His object was to follow 
up the line of research opened by Dr. 
Kane. He wintered at Point Foulke, 
about ten miles from Cape Alexander, 
which forms the eastern portal of Smith 
Sound. Dr. Hayes crossed Smith Souud 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



255 



in the spring with dog-sledges, but his 
observations are not to be depended on, 
and it is very uncertain how far he ad- 
vanced northward on the other side. He 
returned to Boston on October 23, 1861. 
Charles Hall, of Cincinnati, was led 
to become an arctic explorer through 
his deep interest in the search for 



King William Island. He heard the 
story of the retreat and of the wreck of 
one of the ships from the Eskimo ; he 
was told that seven bodies were buried 
at Todd Island ; and he brought home 
some bones which are believed to be 
those of Lieutenant Le Vescomte of the 
Erebus. 




KANE AND HIS COMPANIONS BRAVING THE COLD. 



Franklin. In his first journey, 1860-62, 
lie discovered the interesting remains of 
a stone house which Sir Martin Fro- 
bisher built on the Countess of Warwick 
Island in 1578. In his second expedi- 
tion, 1864-69, Hall, by dint of the 
most unwearied perseverance at length 
reached the line of the retreat of the 
Franklin survivors, at Todd's Island 
and Peffer river, on the south coast of 



Finally, in 1 871, he took the Polaris 
for 250 miles up the channel which 
leads northwards from Smith Sound. 
The various parts of this long channel 
are called Smith Sound, Kane Basin, 
Kennedy Channel, and Robeson Chan- 
nel. The Polaris was beset on 30th 
August ; and her winter quarters were in 
81° 38' N., called Thank God Bay. 
The death of Hall followed and the 



256 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



subsequent fortunes of the expedition 
were of the most perilous description. 

Between 1858 and 1872 the Swedes 
sent seven expeditions to Spitzbergen 
and two to Greenland. All returned 
with valuable scientific results. That 
of 1864 under Nordenskiold and Duner 
made observations at eighty different 
places on the Spitzbergen shores, and 
fixed the heights of numerous moun- 
tains. In 1868, in an iron steamer, the 
Sophia, the Swedes attained a latitude 
of 81° 42' N. on the meridain of 18° E., 
during the month of September. In 
1872 an expedition consisting of the 
Polhem steamer and brig Gladen, com- 
manded by Professor Nordenskiold and 
Lieutenant Palander, wintered in Mus- 
sel Bay, on the northern shore of Spitz- 
bergen. In the spring an important 
sledging journey of sixty days' dura- 
tion was made over North-Bast Land. 
The expedition was in some distress as 
regards provisions owing to two vessels, 
which were to have returned, having 
been forced to winter. But in the sum- 
mer of 1873 they were visited by Mr. 
Leigh Smith, in his yacht Diana, who 
supplied them with fresh provisions. 

Pressing Northward. 

Dr. Petermann of Gotha urged his 
countrymen to take their share in the 
noble work of polar discovery, and at 
his own risk he fitted out a small vessel 
called the Germania, which sailed from 
Bergen in May, 1868, under the com- 
mand of Captain Koldewey. His cruise 
extended to Hinlopen Strait in Spitz- 
bergen, but was merely tentative ; and 
in 1870 Baron von Heuglin with Count 
Zeil explored the Stor Fjord in a Nor- 
wegian schooner, and also examined 
Walter Thy men's Strait. After the re- 



turn of the Germania in 1 868 a regular 
expedition was organized under the 
command of Captain Koldewey, provi- 
sioned for two years. It consisted of 
the Germania, a screw steamer of 140 
tons, and the brig Hansa commanded 
by Captain Hegemann. 

Crushed in the Ice. 

Lieutenant Payer, the future discov- 
erer of Franz Josef Land, gained his 
first arctic experience on board the 
Germania. The expedition sailed from 
Bremen on the 15th June, 1869, its des- 
tination being the east coast of Green- 
land. But the Hansa got separated 
from her consort and crushed in the ice. 
The crew built a house of patent fuel 
on the floe, and in this strange abode 
they passed their Christmas. In two 
months the current had carried them 
south for 400 miles. By May they had 
drifted iioo miles on their ice-raft, and 
finally, on June 14, 1870, they arrived at 
the Moravian mission station of Fried- 
riksthal, to the west of Cape Farewell. 

Fairer fortune attended the Germania. 
She sailed up the east coast of Green- 
land, and eventually wintered at the 
Pendulum Islands of Clavering. In 
March, 1870, a travelling party set out, 
under Koldewey and Payer, and reached 
a distance of 100 miles from the ship to 
the northward, when want of provisions 
compelled them to return. A grim 
cape, named after Prince Bismarck, 
marked the northern limit of their dis- 
coveries. As soon as the vessel was free, 
a deep branching inlet was discovered 
stretching for a long distance into the 
interior of Greenland. Along its shore 
are peaks 7,000 and 14,000 feet high. 
The expedition returned to Bremen on 
September 11, 1870. 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



257 



Lieutenant Payer was resolved to con- 
tinue in the path of polar discovery. 
He and a naval oflficer named Weyprecht 
freighted a Norwegian schooner called 
the Isbjorn, and examined the edge of 
the ice between Spitzbergen and Nova 
Zembla, in the summer of 187 1. Their 
observations led them to select the 
route by the north end of Nova Zembla 
with a view to making the north-east 
passage. It was to be an Austria-Hun- 
garian expedition, and the idea was 
seized with enthusiasm by the whole 
empire. Weyprecht was to command 
the ship, while Julius Payer conducted 
the sledge parties. 

A Winter of Adventures. 

The steamer Tegethoff, of 300 tons, 
was fitted out in the Elbe, and left 
Tromso on July 14, 1872. The season 
was exceptionally severe, and the vessel 
was closely beset near Cape Nassau, at 
the northern end of Nova Zembla, in 
the end of August. The summer of 1 873 
found her still a close prisoner drifting, 
not with a current, but in the direction 
of the prevailing wind. At length, on 
the 3 1st August, a mountainous country 
was sighted about 14 miles to the north. 
In October the vessel was drifted within 
three miles of an island lying off the 
main mass of land . Payer landed on it. 
It was named after Count Wilczek, one 
of the warmest friends of the expedi- 
tion. 

Here the second winter was passed. 
Bea'-s were very numerous and as many 
as sixty-seven were killed, their meat 
proving to be a most efficient remedy 
against scurvy. In March, 1874, Payer 
made a preliminary sledge journey in 
intense cold. On 24th March he started 
for a more prolonged journey of thirty 
17 



days. Payer found that the newly dis- 
covered country equalled Spitzbergen 
in extent, and consisted of two or more 
large masses — Wilzcek Land to the east, 
Zichy Land to the west, intersected by 
numerous fords and skirted by a large 
number of islands. A wide channel, 
named Austria Sound, separates the two 
main masses of land, where Rawlinson 
Sound forks oflf to the north-east. 

Perilous Voyage. 

The mountains attain a height of 
2000 to 3000 feet, the depressions be- 
tween them being covered with gla- 
ciers ; and all the islands even are cov- 
ered with a glacial cap. The whole 
country was named Franz-Josef Land. 
Payer returned to the Tegethoff on 24th 
April ; and a third journey was under- 
taken to explore a large island named 
after McClintock. It then became ne- 
cessary to abandon the ship and attempt 
a retreat in boats. This perilous voy- 
age was commenced on 20th May. 
Three boats stored with provisions were 
placed on sledges. It was not until 
I4tli August that they reached the edge 
of the pack and launched the boats. 

Eventually they were picked up by a 
Russian schooner and arriv^ed at Vardo 
on September 3, 1874. This great 
achievement is one of the most impor- 
tant connected with the north polar re- 
gion that has been made in the nine- 
teenth century, and will probably lead 
in due time to still further discoveries 
in the same direction. 

One of the most interesting problems 
connected with the physical geography 
of the polar regions is the history and 
actual condition of the vast interior of 
Greenland, which is generally believed 
to be one enormous glacier. In 1867 



:i58 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



Mr. Edward Whymper carefully plan- 
ned an expedition to solve the question, 
and went to Greenland, accompanied by 
Dr. Robert Brown ; but the season was 
too late and progress was stopped, after 
going a short distance, by the breaking 
down of the dog-sledges. But Dr. 
Brown made most valuable geological 
and natural history collections, chiefly 
in the neighborhood of Disco, and still 
more valuable observations, the publi- 
cation of which has added considerably 
to our knowledge. Dr. Rink, for many 
years royal inspector of South Green- 
land and the most distinguished autlior- 
ity on all Greenlandic questions, has 
also visited the inland ice, and has given 
his stores of information to the world. 

Captain Nare's Expedition. 

The gallant enterprises of other coun- 
tries rekindled the zeal of England for 
arctic discovery ; and in October, 1 874, 
the prime minister announced that an 
expedition would be despatched in the 
following year. The route by Smith 
Sound was selected because it gave the 
certainty of exploring a previously un- 
known area of considerable extent, be- 
cause it yielded tlie best prospect of 
valuable scientific results, and because 
it offered, with proper precautions, rea- 
sonable security for a safe retreat in case 
of disaster. 

Two powerful screw steamers, the 
Alert and Discovery, were selected for 
the service, and Captain Nares was se- 
lected as leader. Commander Mark- 
ham, who had made a cruise up Baffin's 
Bay and Barrow Strait in a whaler dur- 
ing the previous year. Lieutenant 
Aldrich, an accomplished surveyor, and 
Captain Feilden, as naturalist, were 
also in the Alert. The Discovery was 



commanded by Captain Stephenson, 
with Lieutenant Beaumont as first 
lieutenant. The expedition left Ports- 
mouth on the 29th May, 1875, and en- 
tered Smith Sound in the last days of 

July. 

After much difficulty with the drift- 
ing ice Lady Franklin Bay was reached, 
where the Discovery was established in 
winter-quarters. The Alert passed on- 
wards, and reached the edge of the 
palaeocrysticsea, the ice-floes being from 
80 to 100 feet in thickness. Leaving 
Robeson Channel, the vessel made pro- 
gress between the land and the ground- 
ed floe pieces, and passed the winter of? 
the open coast and facing the great 
polar pack. Autumn travelling parties 
were despatched in September and Octo- 
ber to lay out depots ; and during the 
winter a complete scheme was matured 
for the examination of as much of the 
unknown area as possible, by the com- 
bined efforts of sledging parties from 
the two ships, in the ensuing sprin;^. 
The parties started on April 3, 1876 

Valuable Discoveries. 

Captain Markham with Lieutenant 
Parr advanced, in the face of almost in- 
surmountable difficulties, over the polar 
pack to the high latitude of 83° 20' 
26'' N. Lieutenant Aldrich explored 
the coast-line to the westward, facing 
the frozen polar ocean, for a distance of 
220 miles. Lieutenant Beaumont made 
discoveries of great interest along the 
northern coast of Greenland. The par- 
ties were attacked by scurvy, which, 
while increasing the difficulty and 
hardships of the work a hundredfold, 
also enhanced the devoted heroism of 
these gallant explorers. Captain Feilden 
was indefatigable in making collections, 



I 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



259 



and was zealously assisted by all the 
officers. 

The expedition returned to England 
in October, 1876. The Alert reached 
the highest northern latitude ever at- 
tained by any ship, and wintered 
further north than any ship had ever 
wintered before. The results of the 
expedition were the discovery of 3CX) 
miles of new coast-line , the examina- 
tion of this part of the frozen polar 
ocean, a series of meteorological, mag- 
netic, and tidal observations at two 
points farther north than any such ob- 
servations had ever been taken before, 
and large geological and natural history 
oUections. 

Compelled to Return. 

In the same year, 1875, Sir Allen 
Young undertook a voyage in his steam 
yacht, the Pandora, to attempt to force 
his way down Peel Sound to the mag- 
netic pole, and if possible to make the 
north-west passage by rounding the 
eastern shore of King William Island. 
The Pandora entered Peel Sound on 
August 29, 1875, and proceeded down 
it much farther than any vessel had 
gone before since it was passed by 
Franklin's two ships in 1846. Sir Allen 
sighted Cape Bird, at the northern side 
of the western entrance of Bellot Strait. 
But here an ice-barrier right across the 
channel barred his progress, and he was 
obliged to retrace his steps, returning 
to England on October 16, 1875. In 
the following year Sir Allen Young 
made another voyage in the Pandora 
to the entrance of Smith Sound. 

In 1879 an enterprise was undertaken 
in the United States, with the object of 
throwing further light on the sad his- 
tory of the retreat of the oflficers and 



men of Sir John Franklin's expedition, 
by examining the west coast of King 
William Island in the summer, when 
the snow is off the ground. The party 
consisted of Lieutenant Schwatka of 
the United States army and three 
others. Wintering near the entrance 
of Chesterfield Inlet in Hudson's Bay, 
they set out overland for the estuary of 
the Great Fish River, assisted by Eski- 
mo and dogs, on April i, 1879. 

Great Herd of Reindeer. 

They only took one month's provi- 
sions, their main reliance being upon 
the game afforded by the region to be 
traversed. The party obtained, during 
the journeys out and home, no less than 
five hundred and twenty-two reindeer. 
After collecting various stories from 
the Eskimo at Montreal Island and 
at an inlet west of Cape Richardson, 
Schwatka crossed over to Cape Her- 
schel on King William Island in June. 
He examined the western shore of the 
island with the greatest care for relics 
of Sir John Franklin's parties, as far as 
Cape Felix, the northern extremity. 

The return journey was commenced 
in November by ascending the Great 
Fish River for some distance and then 
marching over the intervening region 
to Hudson's Bay. The cold of the 
winter months in this country is 
oftentimes intense, the thermometer 
falling as low as 70° below zero — so 
that the return journey was most re- 
markable, and reflects the highest credit 
on Lieutenant Schwatka and his com- 
panions. As regards the search little 
was left to be done after M'Clintock, 
but some graves were found, as well as 
a medal belonging to Lieutenant Irving 
of H. M. S. Terror, and some bones 



260 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



believed to have been his, which were 
brought home and interred at Edin- 
burgh. 

Mr. Gordon Bennett, the proprietor 
of the New York Herald^ having re- 
solved to despatch an expedition of 
discovery at his own expense by way 
of Behring Strait, the Pandora was 
purchased from Sir Allen Young, and 
rechristened the Jeannette. lyieutenant 
De Long of the United States navy was 
appointed to command, and it was made 
a national undertaking by special Act 
of Congress, the vessel being placed 
under martial law and officered from 
the navy. 

The Jeannette sailed from San Fran- 
cisco on July 8, 1879, and was last seen 
steaming towards Wrangell Land on 
the 3d of September. This land had 
been seen by Captain Kellett, in H. M. 
S. Herald on August 17, 1879, ^^^ no 
one had landed on it, and it was shown 
on the charts by a long dotted line. 

Searching Party. 

The Jeannette v/as provisioned for 
three years, but as no tidings had been 
received of her up to 1881, two steam- 
ers were sent up. Behring Strait in 
search. One of these, the Rodgers, 
under Lieutenant Berry, anchored in a 
good harbor on the south coast of Wran- 
gell Land on the 26th August 1881. 
The land was explored by the officers 
of the Rodgers and found to be an 
island about 70 miles long by 28, with 
a ridge of hills traversing it east and 
west, the 71st parallel running along 
its southern shore. 

Lieutenant Berry then proceeded to 
examine the ice to the northward, and 
attained a higher latitude by 21 miles 
than had ever been reached before on 



the Behring Strait meridian No news 
was obtained of the Jeannette, but soon 
afterwards melancholy tidings arrived 
from Siberia. After having been beset 
in heavy pack ice for twenty-two 
months, the Jeannette was crushed and 
sunk on the 12th June 1881. 

Separated in a Gale. 

The officers and men dragged their 
boats over the ice to an island which 
was named Bennett Island, where they 
landed on the 29th July. They reached 
one of the New Siberia Islands on the 
loth September, and on the 12th they 
set out for the mouth of the Lena. But 
in the same evening the three boats 
were separated in a gale of wind. A 
boat's crew with Mr, Melville, the en- 
gineer, reached Irkutsk, and Mr. Mel- 
ville set out in search of Lieutenant 
De Long and his party, who had also 
landed. The other boat was lost. Event- 
ually Melville discovered the dead bodies 
of De Long and two of his crew on 
March 23, 1883. They had perished 
from exhaustion and want of food. 
The Rodgers was burnt in its winter 
quarters, and one of the officers, Mr. 
Gilder, made a hazardous journey home- 
wards through north-east Siberia. 

On September 18, 1875, Lieutenant 
Weyprecht, one of the discoverers of 
Franz-Joseph Land, read a thoughtful 
and carefully prepared paper before a 
large meeting of German naturalists at 
Gratz on the scientific results to be 
obtained from polar research and the 
best means of securing them. He urged 
the importance of establishing a num- 
ber of stations within or near the Arctic 
Circle, in order to record complete 
series of synchronous meteorological 
and magnetic observations. 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



261 



I^ieutenant Weyprecht did not live I at another at St. Petersbunrin r«S, a 
to see his suggestions carried into exe- it was decided that elch^. i f. 

.ution, bnt they bore frnit in dne ti.e. | establish fnf ^rl^f sta^s th^re 




. BRILLIANT AURORA IN ThB POLAR SEA. 

representeT^r"""- ."^ ^""^^ ""^ I ^^^^^'^-^^^ observations should be 
ar wamhtirg m 1879, and | project was matured and executed. 



262 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD. 



The American stations commenced 
work in 1882. I^ieutenant Greely's 
party consisted of two other lieutenants, 
of twenty sergeants and privates of the 
United States army, and Dr. Pavy, an 
enthusiastic explorer who had been 
educated in France, and had passed the 
previous winter among the Eskimo of 
Greenland. On August 11, 1881, the 
steamer Proteus conveyed Lieutenant 
Greely and his party to Lady Franklin 
Bay during an exceptionally favorable 
season ; a house was built at the Dis- 
cover' s winter-quarters, and they were 
left with two years' provisions. The 
regular series of observations was at 
once commenced, and two winters were 
passed without accident. Travelling 
parties were also sent out in the sum- 
mer, dogs having been obtained at 
Disco. 

Lieutenant Lockwood made a jour- 
ney along the north coast of Greenland, 
and reached a small island. Dr. Pavy 
and another went a short distance be- 
yond the winter-quarters of the Alert, 
and a trip was made into the interior 
of Grinnell Land. But all this region 
had already been explored and exhaus- 
tively examined by the English expe- 
dition in 1875-76. 

Greely Makes a Start. 

As no successor arrived in the sum- 
mer of 1883 — though relieving vessels 
were despatched both in 1882 and 1883 
— Lieutenant Greely started from Lady 
Franklin Bay with his men on the 9th 
of August, expecting to find a vessel 
in Smith Sound. 

On the 2 1 St of October they were 
obliged to encamp at Cape Sabine, on 
the western shore of Smith Sound, and 
build a hut for wintering. A few 



depots were found, which had been left 
by Sir George Nares and Lieutenant 
Beebe, but all was exhausted before the 
spring. Then came a time of inde- 
scribable misery and acute suffering. 
The poor fellows began to die of actual 
starvation ; and when the relieving 
steamers Thetis and Bear reached Cape 
Sabine, Lieutenant Greely and six 
suflfering companions were found just 
alive. 

If the simple and necessary precau- 
tion had been taken of stationing a 
depot ship in a good harbor at the 
entrance of Smith Sound, in annual 
communication with Greely on one 
side and with America on the other, 
there would have been no disaster. 

Dr. Nansen in Greenland. 

The attention of explorers and scien- 
tific men was turned towards Green- 
land, as the knowledge of the interior 
of that country was very meagre. In 
1886 Lieutenant Robert E. Peary vis- 
ited that island in quest of scientific 
information. The southern part of the 
island was crossed on snow shoes from 
east to west by Dr. Nansen, the famous 
Norwegian explorer. Peary returned 
to Greenland in 1891, with a few at- 
tendants, and making McCormick Bay 
a base of operations, set out the follow- 
ing spring, accompanied by only a 
single companion, on a journey with 
sledges through the northern part of 
the island. 

His journey of 650 miles was a re- 
markable feat considering the great 
difiiculties he encountered. He reached 
the north-east coast of Greenland, but 
further progress was cut off by an area 
of broken stones impassable to his 
sledges. Peary made another journey 



VOYAGES IN TUB POLAR WORLD. 



263 



m the same direction in 1895, but failed 
to advance beyond the point gained by 
his previous expedition. 

Dr. Nansen, already mentioned, con- 
ceived the idea of reaching the pole by 
the strong ocean current that is sup- 
posed to cross the polar sea. For his 
expedition he had a ship constructed, 
so strong as to be able to offer foniJd- 
able resistance to the ice, and so built 
that '^reat pressure would lift it to tho 
top of the ice-floe. Tl ^ intrepid ex- 
plorer set out in this vessel, the Fram, 
in June, 1893, and proceeded to New 
Siberia Islands. Here he anchored his 
ship to an ice-floe, and waited to see if 
the current would drift the vessel across 
the polar sea. It is needless to state 
that his expectations were not realized. 

Great Explorer's Return. 

For three years no tidings came from 
Nansen and his intrepid crew. They 
appeared to have gone out in the mys- 
terious darkness that v^eils the polar 
world, with little prospect of ever re- 
turning or leaving any tidings of their 
fate. But suddenly the world was 
stirred by the information that the 
great explorer had returned from his 
perilous voyage. 

Although Dr. Nansen did not accom- 
plish his object, his vessel floated into 
a higher latitude than had ever been 
reached before by 200 miles ; he was then 
300 miles from the point farthest north. 
Here his vessel turned southward and 
drifted in the opposite direction. In 
March, 1895, he left the Fram because 
of the slow progress made, and began 
a journey north with one companion. 
After struggling for a long time against 
many obstacles he was compelled to 
relinquisli his effort and return. 



With his companion, Joiiansen, he 
finally arrived at Franz Joseph Land, 
where they spent the winter of 1895-96, 
living on the flesh of walruses and 
bears which they succeeded in captur- 
ing. Meanwhile, in 1894, an English 
explorer, Frederick G. Jackson, visited 
Franz Joseph Land, where he remained 
three years, carefully exploring it dur- 
ing this time. In the spring Dr. Jack- 
son met Nansen and his friend, and it 
was through nim that the great Nor- 
wegian explorer was rescued and suc- 
ceeded in returning to his native land. 
His exploit was considered one of the 
most remarkable in the history of j-olar 
explorations. 

He visited England, Scotland and 
the United States, and was everywhere 
received with the honor due to his 
achievements, and wherever he lectured 
great interest was awakened by his 
story of the Polar world. No one desti- 
tute of great courage, intrepidity and 
perseverance could have braved the 
rigors of the Arctic clime and accom- 
plished what Nansen did. 

A Balloon Voyage. 

In the summer of 1897 an explorer of 
Swedish birth, S. A. Andree, conceived 
the idea of reaching the pole by meanv" 
of a balloon voyage. Although the 
attempt was considered by most persons 
as visionary he succeeded in making a 
start with two companions, holding out 
expectations of his return in a few 
months after having accomplished his 
object. The party was never heard of 
afterward, and undoubtedly met the fate 
that was anticipated by all scientific 
men, who looked upon the undertaking 
as a piece of the utmost folly. 

Mention has been made of Lieutenant 



264 



VOYAGES IN THE POLAR WORLD 



Peary, of the United States Navy, who 
has distinguished himself in Arctic ex- 
plorations, especially in Greenland. In 
1898 he returned to Greenland to pursue 
his discoveries. Thus the century has 
witnessed a great advance in our knowl- 
edge of the Polar region, which, by 
these various voyages and the heroic 
achievements of those who have under- 
taken them, has been brought near to 
the rest of the world and is no longer 
such an unknown realm as it was a 
hundred years before and has been for 
thousands of years. 

Life in the Arctics. 

Human life in these far regions is 
even more wonderful than that of the 
lower animals. It is hardly credible 
that in these bleak territories of endless 
snow and winter people should be found 
who prefer their snowy surroundings to 
all the glories of more tropical climes, 
and would not exchange their snow- 
villages for the splendor of any metro- 
polis in either hemisphere. 

There is not a more singular people 
on the earth than those living within 
the Arctic belt; nomadic, and yet all 
their resources are taxed to procure a 
living ; always pressed for ^ood, and yet 
wonderfully hospitable; true barba- 
rians, but none the less peaceable and 
clever. Away in the chilly North 



nature withholds her gifts of food and 
warmth, and then with hard and piti- 
less niggardness, she drives such chilly 
blasts as if life within her sphere had 
angered her. Under a glinting sky 0/ 
frost, within an unbroken landscape of 
inexpressibly lonesome desolation, the 
Esquimau makes his home and lives, 
despite the rigor and barren waste of his 
nameless country. 

These wonderful children of eccentric 
creation are controlled by no law, either 
written or traditional, and acknow- 
ledge accountability only to their own 
conscience, and yet they are orderlv 
and given little to crime. They have 
patriarchs in their tribes who give ad- 
vice, but never assert authority. Es- 
quimau children render singular obe- 
dience to their parents, even after 
reaching maturity, which proceeds from 
a remarkable fraternal devotion, for 
there is no such thing as punishment of 
a male child by its parents. 

The value of the scientific discoveries 
made during the century by explorers 
in the Polar world cannot be overesti- 
mated. The frigid blanks of the North 
have been brought near ; a new world 
has been revealed, although buried in 
snow and ice; adventure has dazzled 
the nations with its feats, and much 
has been added to the sum of human 
knowledge. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 



Livingstone and Stanley in Central Africa. 



(^ThE greatest names in the history 
*\ of Central African exploration 
-^ in the Nineteenth Century are 
those of Livingstone and Stanley. The 
brave old missionary whose name stands 
first had passed more than twenty years 
of his life in Africa when he set out 
upon his last and most important journey 
in 1866. 

Sailing from Zanzibar with a party 
of thirty men — Arabs, Hindoos, and 
negroes — he landed at the mouth of the 
Rovuma, and proceeded in a south- 
westerly direction, along a most difl&cult 
route. It was a mere footpath, which 
had been made by the natives through 
the dense jungle by the easiest way, 
without any regard to its course being 
in the right direction. In pursuing this 
devious track, Livingstone and his party 
had to cut their way through with axes 
to enable the camels to pass under the 
branches of trees, and avoid the im- 
pediments presented by the rope- like 
climbing and trailing plants that fes- 
tooned them. 

In September he was within view of 
Lake Nyassa. Crossing the mountains, 
he descended into the valley of the 
Chambezi, which at that time, misled 
by Portuguese writers and the similarity 
of name, he believed to be the head 
water of the Zambesi. Continuing his 
journey westward, he entered the king- 
dom of Lrunda, the ruler of which, the 
famous Cazembe, was a man of consid- 
erable intelligeiice. This potentate, a 
tall, stalwart negro, clad in crimson 
cotton, received the traveller very hospi- 



tably, and gave orders that he should 
be allowed to go where he would in his 
country unmolested. 

During their interview, the Queen ol 
Cazembe was brought up to the house 
on a litter, surrounded by her body- 
guard. Being a fine, tall young woman, 
of attractive exterior, she had calcu- 
lated, it would seem, upon making a 
powerful impression upon the white 
man, and had dressed herself for the in- 
terview in the choicest articles of attire 
her wardrobe afibrded. But something 
in her appearance caused the doctor to 
laugh ; her majesty laughed also, per- 
haps at the appearance of the doctor, 
who was the first tvhite man she had 
ever seen. The laugh was echoed by 
the whole band of bearers, which so 
disconcerted her that, instead of staying 
to make a conquest of the doctor, she 
beat an undignified retreat, followed by 
her body-guard. 

On leaving Cazembe's capital, Liv- 
ingstone proceeded in a north-easterly 
direction until he reached a lake, which 
the natives called Liemba, but which 
he found, by tracing it northward, to 
be Tanganika. In November, 1867, 
he reached the shores of Lake Moero, 
which is about sixty miles in length, 
and, rounding its southern extremity, 
discovered a river, called the Luapula, 
flowing into it. Following it south- 
ward, he found that it proceeded from 
the great lake of Bangweolo, which is 
as large as Tanganika ; and in explor- 
ing the shores of the lake he found the 
Chambezi flowing into it, and thus dis- 

265 



266 



LIVINGSTONE AND STANLEY IN AFRICA. 



covered that it was not the Zambesi, as 
he had at first supposed. 

He then returned to Lunda, and 
rested some time with the hospitable 
monarch of that country. Again re- 
suming his wanderings, he was deserted 
by all his followers, except two. They 
repented, however, and returned to his 



Ivualaba. Its course was winding, but 
with great perseverance he traced it 
into the long narrow lake of Kamo- 
londo. 

Then he turned southward, and traced 
the river up to the foot of I^ake Moero. 
Turning northward again, he followed 
the river through all its numerous 




DR. Livingstone; thxv 



^^XVJ-^-LVJJ 



service ; and in March, 1 869, he reached 
Ujiji. 

After resting there three months, 
he crossed over to Uguhra, on the wes- 
tern shore of Tanganika, and thence 
accompanied a trading party to Bam- 
barre, where he was detained six months 
with ulcerated feet. As soon as he was 
able to travel again, he set off in a 
northerly direction, and after several 
days reached a broad river called the 



j^^rKD AFRICAN EXPIvORIjR. 

bends to within four degrees of the 
equator. He heard of another lake 
farther north, in which it was said to 
run ; and was led by this northward 
course to the conclusion that he had 
discovered the headwaters of the Nile 
in the Chambezi and the Lualaba. He 
was destitute of means for further ex- 
plorations, however, and retraced his 
steps to Ujiji. 

So long a time had now elapsed since 



UVINGSTONE AND STANLEY IN AFRICA. 



26? 



any news of the gallant old man had 
been received in England that much 
anxiety was felt as to his fate, not only 
in that country, but throughout the 
civilized world. Mr. Bennett, proprie- 
tor of the " New York Herald,'' seized 
the opportunity that thus presented 
itself, and commissioned one of its most 
trusty correspondents, the now famous 
Stanley, to lead an expedition into the 
wilds of Central Africa in search of 
Livingstone. 

Preparing for the Journey. 

Stanley reached Zanzibar in the first 
week of 1871, and a month later left 
that place, accompanied by Farquhar 
and Shaw, who had held the rank of 
mates in the mercantile marine, an 
Arab named Selim, who was to serve 
■^s interpreter, six natives who had 
travelled with Captain Speke, and 
eighteen other negroes. 

Landing at Bagamoyo, twenty-five 
miles south of Zanzibar, he was there 
detained several weeks by the usual 
difficulty of procuring porters ; but at 
length a start was made for the interior, 
all engaged in the expedition in the 
highest spirits. The route pursued 
had never been trodden by white men 
before, and for several days presented 
alternate tracts of jungle and swamp. 
Then the party entered upon a ver- 
dant plain, backed by distant moun- 
tains. But the prospect soon changed; 
the grassy plain was succeeded by ex- 
tensive reedy swamps, intersected by 
numerous shallow streams. His follow- 
ers, too, European as well as native, 
gave Stanley considerable trouble, of 
which an instance may be quoted. 

Stanley was waiting for Shaw, who 
was leading a caravan with supplies. 



Food being scarce in the camp, and 
Shaw not arriving, he sent a message 
to him, requiring him to come on with 
all the speed he could ; but time passed, 
and the caravan arrived not. 

Stanley then set out to meet it, and 
thus describes Shaw's order of march ; 
"Stout burly Chowereh carried the 
cart on his head, having found that 
carrying it was easier than drawing it. 
The sight was such a damper to my 
regard for it as an experiment, that the 
cart was wheeled into the reeds and 
there left. The central figure was 
Shaw himself, riding at a gait which 
rendered it doubtful wiiether he or his 
animal felt most sleepy. Upon expos- 
tulating with him for keeping the cara- 
van so long waiting when there was a 
march on hand, he said he had done 
the best he could ; but as I had seen 
the solemn pace at which he rode, I 
felt dubious about his best endeavors, 
and requested him, if he could not 
mend his pace, to dismount and permit 
the donkey to proceed to camp, that it 
might be loaded for the march." 

African Scenery. 

Wooded valleys succeeded, and in the 
first week of June the expedition en- 
tered the region of Uyanzi, where, says 
Stanley, "the scenery was much more 
picturesque than any we had yet seen 
since leaving Bagamoyo. The ground 
rose into grander waves, hills cropped 
out here and there, great castles of 
syenite appeared, giving a strange and 
weird appearance to the forest. " 

Unyanyembe was reached a few days 
afterwards, but then came many trou- 
bles ; many of the men were prostrated 
by sickness, many more deserted, and 
the invasion of the country by the re- 



268 



tlVlNGSTONE AND STANLEY IN AFRICA. 



doubtable Mirambo added to the diffi- 
culties by which Stanley was beset. 
Farquhar first, and then Shaw were left 
behind, in the care of friendly chiefs, 
weary and sick, and it was not until 
September that Stanley was able to 
leave Unyanyenibe for Ujiji. 

An Unbounded Forest. 

"We ascended," says Stanley, "a 
ridge bristling with syenite boulders of 
massive size, appearing above the forest 
— an illimitable forest, stretching in 
grand waves far beyond the ken of 
vision; ridges, forest-clad, rising gently 
one above another until they receded 
in the dim purple distance, with a warm 
haze floating above them, which, though 
clear enough in our neighborhood, be- 
came impenetrably blue in the far dis- 
tance. 

"Woods, woods, woods, one above 
another, rising, falling and receding — 
a very leafy ocean. The horizon at all 
points presents the same view. There 
may be an indistinct outline of a hill 
far away, or a taller tree than the rest 
conspicuous in its outlines against the 
translucent sky ; with this exception, 
it is the same — the same clear sky drop- 
ping into the depths of the forest, the 
same outlines, the same forest, the same 
horizon, day after day, week after 
week. 

Early in October the expedition." 
entered upon what Stanley calls "a 
grand, noble expanse of park-land, whose 
glorious magnificence and vastness of 
prospect, with a far-stretching carpet of 
verdure, darkly flecked here and there 
by miniature clumps of jungle, was one 
of the finest scenes in Africa." Large 
game was plentiful, herds of zebras, 
buffaloes, giraffes and antelopes roam- 



ing in every direction over the grassy 
plain, so that the travelers were now 
abundantly supplied with food. 

Farther on, where the undulations 
swelled into hills and valleys, and the 
rivers rendered the latter swampy, ele- 
phants and fhinoceri were seen for the 
first time. Leopards were occasionally 
seen, and lions roared at night around 
the camp. 

Ravines and Naked Rocks. 

Winding along the base of the Kasera 
mountains, they crossed the lofty ridge 
which bounds the depression of Imrera 
on the west and north, and on the 29th 
"were in view of the sublimest but 
ruggedest scene we had yet beheld in 
Africa. The country was cut ap in all 
directions by deep, narrow ravines, 
trending' generally toward the north- 
west, while on either side rose enormous 
square masses of naked rock (sandstone), 
with but little vegetation anywhere 
visible, except it obtained a precarious 
tenure in the fissured crown of some 
hill top, or at the base of the scarps 
which everywhere lifted their fronts to 
our view." 

The Malagarazi was crossed on the 
2nd of November, and on the following 
day news that Livingston was at Ujiji 
was received from a negro caravan com- 
ing from that direction, and Stanley 
immediately pushed on with renewed 
vigor. 

On the loth, a silvery gleam seen be- 
tween the trees afforded the first glimpse 
of Lake Tanganika ; but several hours 
elapsed before they looked down upon 
Ujiji, embowered among graceful palms. 
Then the American flag was unfurled, 
guns were fired, and as the expedition 
marched into the village the inhabi- 



LIVINGSTONE AND STANLEY IN AFRICA. 



269 



tants, Arabs and negroes of many tribes, 
swarmed out to meet them. 

''Good morning, sir," said a voice 
from the black crowd, and Stanley, look- 
ing round in surprise, saw a joyous- 



' ' Is Dr. Livingstone here ? " asked 

Mr. Stanley. 

"Yes, sir." 

"Are you sure?" 

"Sure, sir ; I leave him just now." 




HENRY M. STA.NI.EY, FAMOUS FOR HIS EXPLORATIONS IN AFRICA. 



looking negro, wearing a white turban 
and a long white shirt. 

" Who the mischief are you ? " the 
astonished traveller asked. 

" I am Susi, the servant of Dr. Liv- 
ingstone," was the reply. 



"Good morning, sir," said another 
voice. 

"Hallo!" said Stanley. "Is this 
another one?" 

" Yes, sir," said another ebony figure. 

"Well, what is your name ?" 



270 



LIVINGSTONE AND STANLEY IN AFRICA. 



"My name is Ghumah, sir." 

" And is the doctor well ?" 

" Not very well, sir." 

' ' Now, you Susi, run and tell the doc- 
tor I am coming." 

"Yes, sir." And off rushed Susi. 

Proceeding through a momently in- 
creasing crowd, Stanley met Susi 
again, breathless with running. He 
had told the doctor that a white man 
was coming, but when Livingstone, 
too much surprised to conceive such 
a visit possible, asked the traveller's 
name, Susi had no answer to give 
him. The news had spread, how- 
ever, and the Arab r-agnates of the 
place gathered under the verandah. 

Stanley Meets Dr. Livingstone. 

"I pushed back the crowd," says 
Stanley, "and walked down a living 
avenue of people, until I came in front 
of the semi-circle of Arabs, in front of 
which stood the white man. As I ad- 
vanced I noticed he was pale, looked 
wearied, had a gray beard, wore a blue 
cap with a faded gold band round it, 
had on a red-sleeved waistcoat, and a 
pair of grey tweed trousers. 

"I would have run to him, only I 
was a coward in the presence of such a 
mob — would have embraced him, only 
he being an Englishman I did not know 
how he would receive me ; so I walked 
deliberately to him, took off my hat and 
said, 'Dr. Livingstone, I presume?' 
' Yes, ' said he, with a smile, lifting his 
cap slightly. I replaced my hat on my 
head, and he puts on his cap, and we 
grasp hands, and I say, 'I thank God, 
doctor, I have been permitted to see 
you.' He answered, ' I feel thankful 
that I am here to welcome you." I 
turned to the Arabs, took off my hat to 



them in respon ..e to the saluting chorus 
oi yambos I received, and the doctor in- 
troduced them to me by name." 

The Arabs, with the delicacy of true 
politeness, soon left the two Europeans 
together, and then Stanley handed to 
Livingstone a bag of letters which had 
been lying for months at Unyanyembe, 
and the doctor had many questions to ask, 
which passed the afternoon and evening. 

One morning they embarked in a 
large canoe, lent by one of the Arab 
gentlemen of the place, and steered 
northward, keeping close to the shore, 
"with a range of hills, beautifully 
wooded and clothed with green grass, 
sloping abruptly, almost precipitously, 
into the depths of the fresh-water sea, 
towering immediately above us, and as 
we rounded the several capes or points, 
roused expectations of some new won- 
der, or some exquisite picture. Nor 
were we disappointed. 

Gardens and Palmy Forests, 
" From Bagamoyo to Ujiji I had seen 
nothing to compare to them — these 
fishing settlements under the shade of 
palms and plantains, banians, and mi- 
mosa, with cassava gardens to the right 
and left of palmy forests, and patches 
of luxuriant grain looking down upon 
the quiet bay. ' ' 

The northern shores of the lake were 
flat, with many reed-beds, and croco- 
diles were numerous, though on the 
southern portion they were seldom 
seen. Skirting these marshy shores, 
the explorers reached the western side 
of the lake, which rose much more 
loftily and precipitously than the east- 
ern. On the 1 2th of December they 
regained Ujiji, from which they had 
been absent twenty-eight days. Liv- 



LIVINGSTONE AND STANLEY IN AFRICA. 



271 



ingstone then couimeiiced writing let- 
ters, and copying memoranda of his 
explorations and discoveries into his 
journal, which, with the letters, Stanley 
was to take to England on his return. 

"I sketched him," says the latter, 
" while sitting in his shirt-sleeves in 
the verandah, with his diary on his 
knee, as he pondered on what he had 
witnessed during his long marches." 

Ivivingstone and Stanley left Ujiji in 
company on the 27th of November 
with the British and American flags 
waving at the prows of the two large 
canoes lent them by the friendly Arabs. 
Skirting the eastern shore in a south- 
ward direction, the travellers landed at 
Urimba, and, after waiting to be joined 
by thosfe of their followers who had 
gone by land, started up the valley of 
the Ivoajeri for Unyanyembe. It was 
soon found that the guide knew nothing 
about the road, notwithstanding his 
voluble assurances that he was well 
acquainted with the topography of all 
of the surrounding country. Stanley 
therefore put himself at the head of 
the caravan, and led a due easterly 
course, as indicated by the compass. 

Stanley and the Elephant. 
One day, about a fortnight after their 
departure from Ujiji, and when food 
was becoming scarce, Stanley took his 
rifle and strolled up a picturesque ra- 
vine in quest of game. Advancing 
through thick forests, he suddenly found 
himself confronted with a huge ele- 
phant. "Methought," says the travel- 
ler, "when I saw his trunk stretched 
forward, like a warning finger, that I 
heard a voice say, ^ Siste^ venator P 
But whether it did not proceed from 
my imagination — no, I believe it pro- 



ceeded from one of my party, who 
nmst have shouted ' Lo, an elephant ! 
an elephant, my master ! ' for the young 
rascal had fled as soon as he witnessed 
the awful colossus in such close vicin- 
age. Recovering from my astonish- 
ment, I thought it prudent to retire 
also. As I looked behind, I saw him 
waving his trunk, which I understood 
to mean, ' Good bye, young fellow ! It 
is lucky for you you went in time, for 
I was going to pound you to a jelly.' " 

Had to Live on Mushrooms. 

Tracks of animals were frequently 
observed, but, it being the rainy season, 
the game was scattered, and none could 
be procured. Persistently holding an 
easterly course, Stanley led the way 
over ridge after ridge, seeing rivers 
foaming and brawling through narrow 
beds that in summer were dry, and on 
the ninth day of the march saw Mag- 
dala Mount, bearing north-east, and 
knew that they were approaching Im- 
rera. 

Rain had fallen every day, and a veil 
of grey haze hung over the forest. 
Mushrooms were abundant, and for the 
last day or fwo constituted the travel- 
lers' only food. Arrived at Imrera, the 
natives crowded around them with sup- 
plies and congratulations ; but they 
lialted only a day there, and on the 19th 
two zebras fell to Stanley's rifle, and 
the caravan was again joyous. 

On the 31st they met a caravan on its 
way from Unyanyembe to Ujiji, and 
learned the death of Shaw at the former 
place, the result of fever, rendered fatal 
by intemperance. The Gombe was 
reached on the 7th of February, and 
they camped near one of its largest 
lakes, which is several miles in length, 



272 



LIVING«TONE AND STANLEY IN AFRICA. 



and swarms with hippopotami and croc- 
odiles. Here numerous imprints of 
lions' feet were observed, besides those 
of elephants, rhinoceri, hogs, and ante- 
lopes ; and on the following day, while 
looking for game, Stanley was startled 
by the roaring of three lions, apparently 
close at hand. 

Bounded into the Forest. 

Instinctively cocking his rifle, he 
glanced keenly around, and detected, 
not the lions, but a large antelope, 
which stood trembling, as if it dreaded 
the fatal spring of the forest lords- 
Stanley fired, and the antelope gave a 
tremendous bound, and rushed into the 
forest, where, though wounded, as 
shown by its bloody trail, it disappeared. 
The report seemed to have scared the 
lions, for they were not seen or heard 
again. 

Unyanyembe was reached on the i8th 
of February, and the valley of Khiwhara 
entered with flags flying and guns firing. 
Stanley's first act was to raise a monu- 
ment over the grave of Shaw. Fifty 
men were engaged for two days in 
bringing rocks to the spot, with which 
a cairn eight feet long and five broad 
was constructed, which lyivingstone 
said would ever afterwards be known as 
the grave of the first white man who 
had died in Unyamwezi. 

Stanley remained in his old quarters, 
with Livingstone as his guest, until the 
14th of March, when they separated ; 
the latter resolved not to leave Africa 
until the mystery of the Nile sources 
was finally cleared up, and the former 
resumed his return journey to Zanzibar. 

On the 27th, when the expedition 
was encamped in the shade of a group 
of colossal baobabs, they were startled 



by the bellowing of war-horns, and at 
first thought that an attack was about 
to be made on the camp. It soon be- 
came known, however, that the alarm 
was on account of the rumored incursion 
of an unfriendly tribe. 

Stanley thus describes the scene which 
this alarm preluded : — ^^" The men rushed 
to their villages, and in a short time 
we saw them arrayed in full fighting 
costume. Feathers of the ostrich and 
the eagle waved over their fronts, or 
the mane of the zebra surrounded their 
heads ; their knees and ankles were 
hung with little bells ; joho robes floated 
behind, from their necks; spears, asse- 
gais, knob-sticks, and bows were flour- 
ished over their heads, or held in their 
right hands, as if ready for hurling. 

A Mimic War. 

' ' On each flank of a large body which 
issued from the principal village, and 
which came at a uniform swinging 
double-quick, the ankle and knee bells 
all chiming in admirable unison, were 
a cloud of skirmishers, consisting of the 
most enthusiastic, who exercised them- 
selves in mimic war as they sped along. 
Column after column, companies from 
every village, hurried past our camp, 
until, probably, there were nearly a 
thousand soldiers gone to the war." At 
nightfall these warriors returned from, 
the forest. There had been no fighting, 
the alarm having been without founda- 
tion. 

On the 30th the expedition arrived at 
Khonze, and halted near the village, 
while some friendly Wagogo travellers 
who had joined them, settled the cus- 
toms duties, or tribute, with the chief. 
The Wagogos ran back to the halting- 
place, breathless, shouting, "Why do 



LIVINGSTONE AND STANLEY IN AFRICA. 



27S 



you halt here? Do you wish to die? 
These pagans will not take the tribute, 
but they boast they will eat up all your 
cloth." Close upon their heels came 
the chief and his fighting men, all 
armed. 

Stanley ordered his men to load, and 
then strode up to the chief, and asked 
whether he had come to take the cloth 
by force, or would accept quietly what 
was given him. A Wanyamwezi, who 
had instigated the chief to make an ex- 
orbitant demand, was about to speak, but 
Stanley pushed him aside, and threat- 
ened to shoot him first if he was forced 
to fight. The chief laughed at the 
man's discomfiture, and in a short time 
he and Stanley settled the matter to 
their mutual satisfaction. 

Danger of a Massacre. 

Two days afterwards, whilst halting 
near the village of Mapanga, they were 
surprised by a rush of forty or fifty 
armed men from the jungle, all whoop- 
ing and yelling, and brandishing their 
spears, in a manner unmistakably hos- 
tile. The moment was critical. One 
spear thrown, one musket fired, would 
have been the signal for an onslaught, 
the prelude, perhaps, of a massacre. 

The opposing forces were numeric- 
ally equal ; but Stanley knew that the 
whole of his men could not be relied 
upon for a fight, and prudence united 
with humanity in suggesting an effort 
to settle the cause of quarrel peacefully. 
Without arising from the bale on which 
he was seated, he desired his flag- bearer 
to inquire whether the chief of the 
Khonze came to rob them. 

"No," replied the chief. " We don't 

want to rob you, or to stop the road ; 

but we want the tribute." 
18 



" Don't you see us halted, and a bale 
opened to send it?" said Stanley, direct- 
ing his attention to a bale of goods 
which had just been opened. "We 
have halted so far from your village 
that, when the tribute is settled, we 
may proceed on our way, as the day is 
yet young." 

The chief laughed, and explained in 
his turn that, as he and his men were 
cutting wood for a new fence for the vil- 
lage, a lad brought the news that a cara- 
van was about passing through the coun- 
try without stopping. The tribute was 
then settled amicably, and the chief 
begged Stanley to make rain for him, 
as none had fallen for months, and his 
crops were suffering. Our traveller 
told him that, though, white men were 
very clever, much superior to the Arabs, 
they could not make rain ; and, though 
disappointed, the chief was satisfied, 
and accompanied the expedition some 
distance to show them the road. 

Memorial to Farqahar. 

On the 7th of April the village was 
reached at which Farquhar had been 
left, and had died a few days afterwards. 
The chief showed Stanley the spot on 
which the corpse had been deposited, 
but not a vestige of the remains could 
be discovered. A mound of stones was 
raised upon the spot, however, as a 
memorial. 

Continuing their journey, they found 
the river Mukondokwa so swelled by 
the rains that it swept through the val- 
ley like a torrent, while the fields were 
flooded, and every nullah was a stream. 
Three times the foaming flood was 
crossed at the fords by the help of ropes 
fastened to the trees on either bank. 
Rain descended heavily every day, and 



2f4 



LIVINGSTONE AND STANLEY IN AFRICA. 



the drenched travellers had to wade 
through the floods or tramp through 
dripping jungles. 

On the 13 th they reached a river 
which, though narrow, was too deep to 
be fordable. They had to halt, there- 
fore, and fell a tree, which they con- 
trived should fall across the stream, and 
along this Stanley led the way, the rest 
following by bestriding the tree and 
pushing their bales and boxes before 
them. One young fellow, who was 
carrying on his head the box containing 
Ivivingstone's letters and journals, im- 
pelled by excess of zeal or reckless 
bravado, plunged into the stream. 
Stanley watched him in an agony of 
fear. Suddenly the man, stepping into 
a hole, was immersed up to his chin. 

A Frightened Negro. 

" Look out ! ' ' exclaimed Stanley, 
pointing a revolver at him; "Drop 
that box and I'll shoot you !" All the 
men stood still, or motionless bestrode 
their primitive bridge, to gaze at their 
imperiled companion. The frightened 
negro was grey with fear, but making 
a desperate effort, he got the precious 
box across in safety. 

An hour afterwards they came to the 
river of which this stream was a branch, 
and found it a broad flood of brown 
and foaming water. They constructed 
a raft, by cutting down four trees and 
lashing them together, but it sank as 
soon as it was launched. All their 
ropes were then tied together, making 
a line 180 feet long, one end of which 
was tied round a strong swimmer, who 
undertook to lash it to a tree on the 
other side. 

The negro, strong swimmer as he 
was, was carried far down the stream, 



but he succeeded in gaining the 
opposite bank, and securing the rope 
to a tree. By means of the rope 
both men and baggage were dragged 
through the water, the more valuable 
boxes being conveyed upon a sort of 
light hand-barrow resting upon men's 
shoulders. 

The River Rising. 

A superficial knowledge of the phy- 
sical geography of Africa scarcely pre- 
pares us for such scenes as meet the 
eye of the traveller in the rainy season. 
"Within twenty feet of our camp," 
says Stanley, "was a rising river, with 
flat, low banks ; above us was a gloomy, 
weeping sky ; surrounding us on three 
sides was an immense forest, on whose 
branches we heard the constant patter- 
ing rain ; beneath our feet was a great 
depth of mud, black and loathsome. 
Add to these the thought that the river 
might overflow and sweep us to utter 
destruction." The strong current of the 
Makata, fifty yards wide, was crossed 
by swimming, and on the 29th the ex- 
pedition was at Simbimwenni, where 
the flooded Ungerengeri had y wept away 
the whole of the river wall and about 
fifty houses. Many of the inhabitants 
had been drowned, and the rest had 
abandoned the place, of which a hurri- 
cane had made a wreck. 

The rain had now ceased, but the 
jungle was a pestiferous swamp, where 
huge snakes hung upon the branches 
of trees, and land-crabs, scorpions, and 
innumerable creeping things, swarmed 
upon the black mud beneath. On the 
4th of May the expedition was within 
four miles of Bagamoyo, but that space ■ 
was covered with flood-water, and they 
had to camp on its western margin 



LIVINGSTONE AND STANLEY IN AFRICA. 



2T5 



until canoes could be brought to ferry 
them over. 

Bagaraoyo was entered at sunset on 
the 6th, the arrival being signalized by 
the firing of guns and much shouting 
and gesticulating, after the manner of 
the country. Arabs and Hindoos, Be- 
loochees and negroes, thronged about 
the men who had performed such a 
wonderful march, and when they had 
reached the centre of the town, Stanley 
was greeted and congratulated by Lieu- 
tenant Herin, of the Livingstone Relief 



Expedition, which was to have done 
what had already been accomplished 
by Stanley; by Mr. Oswald Livingstone, 
the doctor's son; and the Rev. Charles 
New, the missionary. 

The long march was ended, and on 
the day after his arrival at Bagamoyo 
the Arab dhow which conveyed the ex- 
pedition back to Zanzibar, anchored in 
the harbor. Soon afterward Stanley 
returned to relate his wonderful ad- 
ventures and discoveries in Central 
Africa. 



CHAPTER XIX. 



Stanley's Great Journeys Across Africa. 




E have now to describe one of 
the most extraordinary, if 
not actually the greatest feat 
ever performed in the annals of modern 
exploration. This expedition under- 
talren by Henry M. Stanley from Zan- 
zibar right across the African continent 
to the Congo, was so full of perilous 
adventure, so remarkable for pluck and 
resolution, that it stands out boldly 
upon the canvas of history as the 
greatest achievement of our times. 

Stanley's own account of what pre- 
ceded his great undertaking is full of 
interest : " While returning to England 
in April, 1874, from the Ashantee War 
the news reached me that I/ivingstone 
was dead -that his body was on its way 
to England ! Livingstone had then 
fallen ! He was dead ! He had died 
by the shores of Lake Bemba, on the 
threshold of the dark region he wished 
to explore ! The work he had promised 
to perform was only begun when death 
overtook him ! 

" The effect which this news had 
upon me, after the first shock passed 
away, was to fire me with a resolution 
to complete his work, to be, if God 
willed it, the next martyr to geograph- 
ical science, or, if my life was to be 
spared, to clear up not only the secrets 
of the Great River throughout its 
course, but also all that remained still 
problematic and incomplete of the dis- 
coveries of Burton and Speke, and 
Speke and Grant. 

The solemn day of the burial of 
276 



the body of my great friend anived 
I was one of the pall-bearers in West- 
minster Abbey, and when I had seen 
the coffin lowered into the grave, and 
had heard the first handful of earth 
thrown over it, I walked away sorrow- 
ing over the fate of David Living- 
stone." 

Soon the resolve was formed to com- 
plete, if possible, the work Livingstone 
had been compelled to leave undone. 
In this memorable expedition the 
"Daily Telegraph," of London, and 
the "New York Herald" newspapers 
were associated. Mr. Stanley was com- 
missioned to complete the discoveries 
of Speke, Burton, and Livingstone. His 
party from England consisted of Francis 
and Edward Pocock and Frederick 
Barker. A barge, named the Lady 
Alice, was taken in sections, besides 
two other boats, with a perfect equip- 
ment. When all preparations had been 
completed, and the farewell dinners 
eaten, Stanley left England, to begin 
his perilous journey, on the 15th of 
August, 1874. 

He reached Zanzibar September 2ist, 
1874, and there found many formei 
associates of his search for Doctor Liv- 
ingstone. He engaged quite a little 
army of followers to go with him and 
carry the outfit. This outfit, which 
consisted of a most miscellaneous col- 
lection of articles, weighed 18,000 
pounds, and was, with the party, car- 
ried across to the continent from Zanzi- 
bar island in six Arab vessels. On the 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



27? 



morning of the i/th of November the 
start was made into the interior. 

The first stage of this journey was to 
the Victoria Nyanza, which Stanley 
desired to explore. The imperfect de- 
scription and explanations of previous 
travellers had left much to be decided 
wncerningthis great inland sea. "Was 
it the source of the Nile or of the 
Cono-o?" " Was it part of a lake system, 
or alake by itself?" These questions 
Stanley had determined to answer once 
for all. 



Many Adventures. 

The advance to the grt d Lake Vic- , 
toria was full of adventurous interest. 
Travelling in the "Dark Continent^' 
means being at times in the wilderness 
without a guide, or with traitors actmg 
as guides, which is a worse alternative. 
This was Stanley's fate, and he was 
deserted in the waste with a small stock 
of food. Through the terrible ' 'jungle' ' 
the men had to crawl, cutting their 
way, guided solely by the compass, 
overcome by hunger and thirst, deser- 
tions frequent, sickness stalking along- 
side. This was indeed ' ' famine-stricken 

Ugogo." 

While on this disastrous march he 
lost five of his people, who " wandered 
on helplessly, fell down, and died." 
The country produced no food, or even 
game, unless lions could be so called. 
Two young lions were found in a den, 
and were quickly killed and eaten. 
This was the only food for the whole 
expedition ! Stanley tells us how he 
returned to camp, and was so struck by 
the pinched jaws of his followers that 
he nearly wept. He decided to utilize his 
precious medical stores, and wisely, for 
the people were famishing ; medicinal 



comforts for the dead had no meaning. 
So he made a quantity of gruel, which 
kept the expedition alive for eight and 
forty hours, and then the men he had 
despatched to Suma for provisions re- 
turned with food. Refreshed they all 
marched on, so that they might reach 
Suma ne>;t morning. 

Hostile Natives. 
After proceeding twenty miles, they 
came to the cultivated districts and en- 
camped. But the natives of Suma 
were hostile, and the increasing sick 
list made a four days' halt necessary. 
There were thirty men ailing from vari- 
ous diseases. Edward Pocock was taken 
ill here, and on the fourth day he be- 
came delirious ; but the increasing sus 
picions of the natives— who are repre- 
sented as a very fine race— made depart- 
ure necessary, and so a start was made 
on the i7tli of January, in very hostile 
company. 

The famine in Ugogo had severely 
tried every man's constitution, and all 
felt weak in spirit if not ill in body. 
"Weary, harassed, feeble creatures,'- 
they reached Chiwyu, four hundrH 
miles from the sea, and camped nea. 
the crest of a hill 5,400 feet high. 
Here Edward Pocock breathed his last. 
He was laid under an acacia, and upon 
the trunk of this fine old tree a cross 
was cut deeply, in memory of a faith- 
ful follower. 

Hence two rivulets run, gradually 
converging, and finally uniting into a 
stream which trends toward Lake Vic- 
toria. So here the extreme southern 
sources of the Nile were discovered ; but 
up to this point the explorer had, as he 
said, "child's play," to what he after- 
wards encountered. We have already 



278 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



seen what this child's play was like. 
Stanley proceeded g-ently to Vinyata, 
where the expedition arrived on the 
2ist of January, 1875. Here a magic 
doctor paid Stanley a visit, and cast 
longing eyes at the stores. 

Next day, after the departure of the 
magic doctor, who came for another 
present, the natives showed hostile 



cowardice the wish for peace. There 
were so many tempting articles too — 
stores dear to the native mind, which the 
inhabitants coveted. No peace would 
be made at any price, and the savages 
attacked the camp in force. 

Stanley disposed his men behind 
hastily-erected earthworks and other 
shelter, and used the sections of the 




FIERCE ATTACK BY NATIVES UPON THE EXPLORERS. 



symptoms. One hundred ,_^. savages, 
armed and in warlike costume, came 
around, shouting and brandishing their 
weapons. At this juncture Stanley, fol- 
lowing Livingstone's practice, decided 
to make no counter demonstration ; but 
to remain quiet in camp, and provoke 
no hostility. This plan did not answer, 
however. The natives mistook for 



lyady Alice barge as a citadel for 
final occupation. There were only sev- 
enty effective men to defend the camp 
but these were divided into detachmenta 
and subdivided. One sub-detachment 
was quickly destroyed, and in the day^'s 
fight twenty-one soldiers and one mes- 
senger were killed — three wounded. 
Stanley's men, however, pursued th« 



STANLEY S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



2T9 



retreating enemy, ,ind burned many vil- 
lages, the men bringing in cattle and 
grain as spoils. Next day the natives 
came on again, but they were quickly 
routed, and the expedition continued 
its way through the now desolate 
valley unmolested. So the Iturnians 
were punished, after three days of 
battle. 

Losses of the Expedition. 

The victory, however, had not been 
much to boast of. After only three 
months' march, the expedition had lost 
1 20 Africans and one European, from 
the effects of sickness and battle. There 
were now only 194 men left of 356 who 
had set out with the expedition. They 
passed on, however, toward the Victoria 
Nyanza, and after escaping the warlike 
Mirambo, who fought everybody on 
principle, Stanley reached Kagehyi on 
the 27th of February. He was now 
close to the Lake, having marched 720 
miles ; average daily march, ten miles. 

On the 8th of March Stanley, leaving 
F. Pocock to command the camp, set 
forth with eleven men in the Lady 
Alice, to explore the Lake and ascer- 
tain whether it is one of a series, as Dr. 
Livingstone said it was. The explorer 
began by coasting Speke Gulf. Many 
interesting observations v/ere made. He 
penetrated into each little bay and creek, 
finding indications that convinced him 
that the slave trade is carried on there. 
But the explorer had to battle for his 
information. Near Chaga the natives 
came down, and, after inducing him 
to land, attacked him; but Stanley 
"dropped" one man, and the natives 
subsided. On another occasion the 
natives tried to entrap him, but he es- 
caped by firing on the savages, killing 



three men, and sinking their canoes 
with bullets from an elephant rifle. 

Continuing his course now unop- 
posed, Stanley coasted along the Uganda 
shore. Just as he was about to depart, 
on the following morning, he perceived 
six beautitul canoes, crowded with men, 
all dressed in white, approaching ; they 
were the king's people conveying a 
messenger from the King of Uganda to 
Stanley, begging a visit from him. 
This messenger was gorgeously arrayed 
for the important occasion ; he wore a 
bead-worked head-dress, above which 
long white cock's feathers waved, and 
a snowy white and long-haired goat- 
skin, intertwined with a crimson robe, 
depending from his shoulders, com- 
pleted his costume. Approaching Stan- 
ley, he delivered his message thus : 

Invitation from a King. 

" The Kabaka (King) sends me with 
many salaams to you. He is in great 
hopes that you will visit him, and has en- 
camped at Usavara, that he may be near 
the lake when you come. He does not 
know from what land you have come, 
but I have a swift messenger with a 
canoe who will not stop until he gives 
all the news to the Kabaka. His 
mother dreamed a dream a few nights 
ago, and in her dream she saw a white 
man on this lake in a boat coming this 
way, and the next morning she told the 
Kabaka, and lo ! you have come. Give 
me your answer, that I may send the 
messenger. Twiyanzi-yanzi-yanzi !" 
(Thanks, thanks, thanks.) 

Thus delivering himself, the messen- 
ger, whose name was Magassa, implored 
Stanley to remain one day longer, that 
he might show him the hospitalities of 
his country, and prepare him for a grand 



280 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AERICA. 



reception by the king, to which Stanley 
consented. 

Magassa was in his glory now. His 
voice became imperious to his escort of 
182 men; even the feathers of his cur- 
ious head-dress waved prouder, and his 
robe had a sweeping dignity worthy of 
a Roman emperor's. Upon landing, Ma- 
gassa's stick was employed frequently. 
The sub-chief of Kadzi was compelled 
to yield implicit obedience to his vice- 
regal behests. 

" Bring out bullocks, sheep, and goats, 
milk, and the mellowest of your choice 
bananas, and great jars of maramba, and 
let the white man and his boatmen eat, 
and taste the hospitalities of Uganda. 
Shall a white man enter the Kabaka's 
presence with an empty belly? See 
how sallow and pinched his cheeks are. 
We want to see whether we can show 
him a kindness superior to what the 
pagans have shown him." 

The Explorer Feted. 

Five canoes escorted the travellers to 
Usavara, the ca|5ital of King Mtesa. 
The explorer was most kindly received, 
and closely questioned upon subjects of 
so diverse a character as to remind 
Stanley of a college examination for a 
degree. 

King Mtesa appeared quite a civil- 
ized monarch, quite a different being 
from what he had been when Speke 
and Grant had visited him as a young 
man. He had become an adherent of 
Mahomet, wore Arab dress, and con- 
ducted himself well. He entertained 
Stanley with reviews of canoes, a naval 
"demonstration" of 84 "ships" and 
2, 500 men ! Shooting matches, parades, 
and many other civilized modes of enter- 
tainment were practiced for the amuse- 



ment of the white man. In Uganda the 
traveller is welcomed, and perfectly safe. 
King Mtesa' s country is situated on 
the equator, and is a much more pleas- 
ant land than might be supposed from 
its geographical position, being fertile, 
and covered with vegetation. It is a 
peculiarly pleasant land for a traveller, 
as it is covered with roads, which are a 
not only broad and firm, but are cut 
almost in a straight line from one point 
to another. 

Good Roads. 

Uganda seems to be unique in the 
matter of roads, the like of which are 
not to be found in any part of Africa, 
except those districts which are held by 
Europeans. The roads are wide enough 
for carriages, but far too steep in places 
for any wheeled conveyance ; but as 
the Waganda (the name given to the 
inhabitants of Uganda) do not use car- 
riages of any kind, the roads are amply 
sufficient for their purposes. The Wa- 
ganda have even built bridges across 
swamps and rivers, but their knowl- 
edge of engineering has not enabled 
them to build a bridge that would not 
decay in a few years. 

Ivike many other tribes which bear, 
but do not deserve, the name of sav- 
ages, the Waganda possess a curiously 
strict code of etiquette, which is so 
stringent on some points that an offen- 
der against it is likely to lose his life, 
and is sure to incur a severe penalty. 
If, for example, a man appears before 
the king with his dress tied carelessly, 
or if he makes a mistake in the mode 
of saluting, or if, in squatting before 
his sovereign, he allows the least por- 
tion of his limbs to be visible, he is led 
off to instant execution. 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



281 



As the fatal sign is given, the victim 
is seized by the royal pages, who wear 
a rope turban around their heads, aud 
at the same moment all the drums and 
other instruments strike up, to drown 
his cries for mercy. He is rapidly 
bound with the ropes snatched hastily 
from the heads of the pages, dragged 
off, and put to death, no one daring to 
take the least notice while the tragedy 
is being enacted. 

Token of Royal Birth. 

They have also a code of sumptuary 
laws which is enforced with the greatest 
severity. The skin of the serval, a kind 
of leopard cat, for example, may only 
be worn by those of royal descent. 
Once Captain Speke was visited by a 
very agreeable young man, who evi- 
dently intended to strike awe into the 
white man, and wore round his neck 
the serval-skin emblem of royal birth. 
The attempted deception, however, re- 
coiled upon its author, who suffered the 
fate of the daw with the borrowed 
plumes. An officer of rank detected 
the imposture, had the young man 
seized, and challenged him to show 
proofs of his right to wear the emblem 
of royalty. As he failed to do so, he 
was threatened with being brought 
before the king, and so compounded 
with the chief for a fine of a hundred 
cows. 

Mtesa was a complete African Blue- 
beard, continually marrying and kill- 
ing, the brides, however, exceeding the 
victims in number. Royal marriage 
is a very simple business in Uganda. 
Parents who have offended their king 
and want to pacify him, or who desire 
to be looked on favorably by him, bring 
their daughters and offer them as he sits 



at the door of his house. As is the case 
with all his female attendants, they are 
totally unclothed, and stand before the 
king in ignorance of their future. 

If he accepts them, he makes them 
sit down, seats himself on their knees, 
and embraces them. This is the whole 
of the ceremony, and as each girl is 
thus accepted, the happy parents per- 
form the curious salutation called 
"n'yanzigging," that is, prostrating 
themselves on the ground, floundering 
about, clapping their hands, and ejacu- 
lating the word "n'yans," or thanks, 
as fast as they can say it. 

Brides by the Wholesale. 

Twenty or thirty brides will some- 
times be presented to him in a single 
morning, and he will accept more than 
half of them, some of them being after- 
ward raised to the rank of wives, while 
the others are relegated to the position 
of attendants. 

Now and then the king held a review, 
in which the valiant and the cowards 
obtained their fitting rewards. These 
reviews offered most picturesque scenes. 
" Before us was a large open sward, 
with the huts of the queen's Kamra- 
viono or commander-in-chief beyond. 
The battalion, consisting of what might 
be termed three companies, each con- 
taining two hundred men, being drawn 
up on the left extremity of the parade 
ground, received orders to march past 
in single file from the right of com- 
panies at a long trot, and re-form again 
at the end of the square. 

"Nothing conceivable could be more 
wild or fantastic than the sight which 
ensued ; the men were all nearly naked, 
with goat or cat skins depending from 
their girdles, and smeared with war 



282 



STANLEY S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



colors, according to the taste of the 
individual ; one-half of the body red or 
black, the other blue, not in regular 
order; as, for instance, one stocking 
would be red, and the other black, 
whilst the breeches above would be the 
opposite colors, and so with the sleeves 
and waistcoat. 

"Everyman carried the same arms, 
two spears and one shield, held as if 
approaching an enemy, and they thus 
moved in three lines of single rank and 
file, at fifteen or twenty paces asunder, 
with the same high action and elongated 
step, the ground leg only being bent, to 
give their strides the greater force. 

Fantastic Parade. 

"After the men had all started, the 
captains of companies followed; even 
more fantastically dressed ; and last of 
all came the great Colonel Congo w, a 
perfect Robinson Crusoe, with his long 
white-haired goat-skins, a fiddle-shaped 
leather shield, tufted with hair at all six 
extremities, bands of long hair tied 
below the knees, and a magnificent 
helmet covered with rich beads of every 
color in excellent taste, surmounted 
with a plume of crimson feathers, in 
the centre of which rose a bent stem 
tufted with goat's hair. Next, they 
charged in companies to and fro, and 
finally the senior officers came charg- 
ing at their king, making violent pro- 
fessions of faith and honesty, for which 
they were applauded. The parade then 
broke up, and all went home." 

Stanley, after remaining some time 
with Mtesa, departed in October to ex- 
plore the country lying between Albert 
Nyanza and the Victoria Nyanza. This 
time he had with him an escort of 
Mtesa's men, under a " general " named 



Sambusi. The expedition, after a pleas- 
ant march, came within a few miles of 
the Albert Nyanza, but then the native 
warriors wished to return, and Stanley 
yielded perforce. He returned, but the 
faint-hearted "general" was put in 
irons by Mtesa, whom he had shamed. 

Imposing Ceremonies. 

The expedition reached Mtesa's on 
the 23d of August, and the king re- 
ceived Stanley in his council chamber 
with great ceremony and many evi- 
dences of friendship. Stanley took this 
occasion to inform him of the object of 
his visit, whicn was to procure guides 
and an escort to conduct him to Albert 
Lake. 

Mtesa replied that he was now en- 
gaged in a war with the rebellious 
people of Uvuma, who refused to pay 
their tribute, harassed the coast of 
Chagwe and abducted his people, "sell- 
ing them afterward for a few bunches 
of bananas," and it was not customary 
in Uganda to permit strangers to pro- 
ceed on their journeys while the king 
was engaged in war; but as soon as 
peace should be obtained he would 
send a chief with an army to give him 
safe conduct by the shortest route to 
the lake. Being assured that the war 
would not last long, Stanley resolved 
to stay and witness it as a novelty, and 
take advantage of the time to acquire 
information about the country and its 
people. 

On the 27th of August Mtesa struck 
his camp, and began the march to Na- 
karanga, a point of land lying within 
seven hundred yards of the island of 
Ingira, which had been chosen by the 
Wavuma as their depot and stronghold, 
He had collected an army nuniberii% 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



i83 



150,000 warriors, as it was expected 
that he would have to fight the rebel- 
lious Wasoga as well as the Wavunia. 
Besides this great army must be reck- 
oned nearly 50,000 women, and about 
as many children and slaves of both 
sexes, so that at a rough guess, after 
looking at all the camps and vari- 
ous tributary nations which, at Mte- 
sa's command, had contributed their 
quotas, the number of souls in Mte- 
sa's camp must have been about 250,- 
000! 

Stanley had the pleasure of review- 
ing this immense army as it was put in 
motion towards the battle-ground. He 
describes the ofiicers and troops in the 
following graphic style : 

"The advance-guard had departed 
too early for me to see them, but, cur- 
ious to see the main body of this great 
army pass, I stationed myself at an early 
hour at the extreme limit of the camp. 

"Brave as a Lion." 
"First with his legion, came Mkwe- 
nda, who guards the frontier between 
the Katonga valley and Willi miesi 
against the Wanyoro. He is a stout, 
burly young man, brave as a lion, hav- 
ing much experience of wars, and cun- 
ning and adroit in his conduct, accom- 
plished with the spear, and possessing, 
besides, other excellent fighting qual- 
ities. I noticed that the Waganda 
chiefs, though Muslimized, clung to 
their war-paint and national charms, 
for each warrior, as he passed by on the 
trot, was most villainously bedaubed 
with ochre and pipe-clay. The force 
under the command of Mkwenda might 
be roughly numbered at 30,000 warriors 
and camp-followers, and though the 
path was a mere goat-track, the rush of 



this legion on the half-trot soon crushed 
out a broad avenue. 

' ' The old general Kangau, who de- 
fends the country between Willimiesi 
and the Victoria Nile, came next with 
his following, their banners flying, 
drums beating, and pipes playing, he 
and his warriors stripped for action, their 
bodies and faces daubed ^nth. white, 
black, and ochreous war-paint. 

Splendid Warriors. 

"Next came a rush of about 2,000 
chosen warriors, all tall men, expert 
with spear and shield, lithe of body and 
nimble of foot, shouting as they trotted 
past their war-cry of ' Kavya, kavya ' 
(the two last syllables of Mtesa's title 
when young — Mukavya, 'king'), and 
rattling their spears. Behind them, a+ 
a quick march, came the musket-armed 
body-guard of the emperor, about two 
hundred in front, a hundred on either 
side of the road, enclosing Mtesa and 
his Katekiro, and two hundred bring- 
ing up the rear, with their drums beat- 
ing, pipes playing, and standards flying, 
and forming quite an imposing and war- 
like procession. 

" Mtesa marched on foot, bare-headed, 
and clad in a dress of blue check cloth, 
with a black belt of English make 
round his waist, and — like the Roman 
emperors, who, when returning in tri- 
umph, painted their faces a deep Ver- 
million — his face dyed a bright red. 
The Katekiro preceded him, and wore 
a dark-grey cashmere coat. I think 
this arrangement was made to deceive 
any assassin who might be lurking in 
the bushes. If this was the case the 
precaution seemed wholly unnecessary, 
as the march was so quick that nothing 
but a gnu would have been effective, 



284 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



and the Wavuma and Wasoga have no 
such weapons. 

" After Mtesa's body-guard had passed 
by, chief after chief, legion after legion, 
followed, each distinguished to the na- 
tive ear by its diflferent and peculiar 
irum-beat. They came on at an ex- 
traordinary pace, more like warriors 
hurrying up into action than on the 
march, and it is their custom, I am 
told, to move always at a trot when on 
an enterprise of a warlike nature." 

A Big War-Boat. 

In the ensuing conflict King Mtesa's 
army was repulsed. Stanley finally 
asked of him 2,000 men, telling him 
that with this number he would con- 
struct a monster war-boat that would 
drive the enemy from their stronghold. 

This proposition gave Mtesa intense 
delight, for he had begun to entertain 
grave doubts of being able to subjugate 
the brave rebels. The 2,000 men being 
furnished, Stanley set them to cutting 
crees and poles, which were peeled and 
the bark used for ropes. He lashed 
three canoes, of seventy feet length and 
six-and-a-half feet breadth, four feet 
from each other. Around the edge of 
these he caused a stockade to be made of 
strong poles, set in upright and then 
intertwined with smaller poles and rope 
bark. 

This made the floating stockade sev- 
enty feet long and twenty-seven feet 
wide, and so strong that spears could 
not penetrate it. This novel craft 
floated with much grace, and as the 
men paddled in the spaces between the 
boats they could not be perceived by 
the enemy, who thought it must be pro- 
pelled by some supernatural agency. 
It was manned by two hundred and 



fourteen persons, and moved across the 
channel like a thing of life. 

As this terrible monster of the deep 
approached the enemy, Stanley caused 
a proclamation to be made to them, in 
deep and awful tones, that if they did 
not surrender at once their whole island 
would be blown to pieces. This strata- 
gem had the desired effect ; the Wavu- 
ma were terror-stricken and surrendered 
unconditionally. Two hours later they 
sent a canoe and fifty men with the 
tribute demanded. Thus ended the 
war and preparations were at once made 
to advance. 

Stanley turned toward Lake Tangan- 
yika, and camped at Ujiji, where he 
had met David Livingstone. Thence 
he journeyed to Nyangwe, the farthest 
northern place attained by Cameron. 
Cameron had gone south to Benguela. 

Famous Tipo-tipo. 

While in the vicinity of Nyangwe, 
Stanley chanced to meet the famous 
trader, Tipo-tipo, who had befriended 
Cameron while on his journey, having 
conducted him as far as Kasongo's 
country. From him he learned that 
Cameron had been unable to explore 
the Lualaba, and thus the work which 
Livingstone had not been able to com- 
plete was as yet unfinished. 

Not believing, as Livingstone did, 
that the Lualaba was the remote south- 
ern branch of the Nile, but having the 
same conviction as Cameron, that it was 
connected with the Congo, and was 
the eastern part of that river, and hav- 
ing, what I^ivingstone and Cameronhad 
not, an ample force and sufficient sup- 
plies, he determined to follow the Lu- 
alaba, and ascertain whither it led. 
He met with the same diffictilty that 



STANLEYS JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



285 



lyivingstone and Cameron encountered 
in the unwillingness of the -people to 
supply canoes. 

They informed him, as they had the 
two previous explorers, that the tribes 
dwelling to the north on the Lualaba 
were fierce and warlike cannibals, who 
would suflfer no one to enter their terri- 
tories, as the Arab traders had fre- 
quently found to their cost. That be- 
tween Nyangwe and the cannibal region 
the natives were treacherous, and that 
the river ran through dreadful forests, 
through which he would have to make 
his way — information which afterwards 
proved to be true. 

The Terrible Dwarfs. 
He nevertheless resolved to go ; but 
it was not easily accomplished, as the 
people of Nyangwe filled his followers 
with terror by the accounts they gave 
of the ferocious cannibals, the dwarfs 
with poisoned arrows who dwelt near 
the river, and the terrible character of 
the country through which they would 
have to pass ; which had such a dis- 
heartening effect upon them that diffi- 
culties arose which would have been 
insurmountable to any one but a man 
of Stanley's indomitable perseverance, 
sagacity and tact. He overcame all 
obstacles ; succeeded in getting canoes, 
and in engaging an Arab chief and his 
followers to accompany him a certain 
distance ; an increase of his force which 
gave confidence to his own people. 

Of course there was a good deal of 
palavering before the Arab, Tipo-tipo, 
could be induced to join the expedition 
and brave the inevitable perils that 
would attend it. 

Tipo tipo listened respectfully to 
Stanley's proposition, and then called 



in one of his officers who had been to 
the far north along the river, requesting 
him to impart such information as he 
possessed in regard to the people inhab- 
iting that country. This man told a 
marvelous tale, almost rivaling the 
wonderful creations of the Arabian 
Nights ; and Stanley subsequently 
learned by his own experience that 
much of the story was true. 

Remarkable Story. 

" The great river," said Tipo-tipo's 
officer, " goes always towards the north, 
until it empties into the sea. We first 
reached Uregga, a forest land, where 
there is nothing but woods, and woods, 
and woods, for days and weeks and 
months. There was no end to the woods. 
In a month we reached Usongora Meno, 
and here we fought day after day. They 
are fearful fellows and desperate. We 
lost many men, and all who were slain 
were eaten. But we were brave and 
pushed on. 

" When we came to Kima-Kima we 
heaid of the land of the little men, 
where a tusk of ivory could be pur- 
chased for a single cowrie (bead). No- 
thing now could hold us back. We 
crossed the Lumami, and came to the 
land of the Wakuma. The Wakuma 
are big men themselves, but among 
them we saw some of the dwarfs, the 
queerest little creatures alive, just a 
yard high, with long beards and large 
heads. 

" The dwarfs seemed to be plucky 
little devils, and asked us many ques- 
tions about where we were going and 
what we wanted. They told us that in 
their country was so much ivory we 
had not enough men to carry it ; ' but 
what do you want with it, do you eat 



286 



STANLEVS JOURNEYS ACROSvS AFRICA. 



it ?' said they. ' No, we make charms 
of it, and will give you beads to show 
us the way.' ' Good, come along.' 

Must See Their King. 

"We followed the little devils six 
days, when we came to theii country, 
and they stopped and said we could go 
no further until they had seen their 
king. Then they left us, and after 
three days they came back and took us 
to their village, and gave us a house to 
live in. Then the dwarfs came from 
all parts. Oh ! it is a big country ! and 
everybody brought ivory, until we had 
about four hundred tusks, big and little, 
as much as we could carry. We bought 
it with copper, beads, and cowries. No 
cloths, for the dwarfs were all naked, 
king and all. We did not starve in the 
dwarf land the first ten days. Bananas 
as long as my arm, and plantains as 
long as the dwarfs were tall. One plan- 
tain was sufficient for a man ^or one 
day. 

'' When we had sufficient ivory and 
wanted to go, the little king said no ; 
' this is my country, and you shall not 
go until I say. You must buy all I 
have got; I want more cowries;' and 
he ground his teeth and looked just like 
a wild monkey. We laughed at him, 
for he was very funny, but he would 
not let us go. Presently we heard a 
woman scream, and rushing out of our 
house, we saw a woman running with 
a dwarf's arrow in her bosom. 

"Some of our men shouted, 'The 
dwarfs are coming from all the villages 
in great numbers ; it is war — prepare ! ' 
We had scarcely got our guns before 
the little wretches were upon us, 
shooting their arrows in clouds. They 
screamed and yelled like monkeys. 



Their arrows were poisoned, and many 
of our men who were hit, died. 

' ' Our captain brandished his two- 
handed sword, and cleaved them as you 
would cleave a banana. The arrows 
passed through his shirt in many places. 
We had many good fellows, and they 
fought well ; but it was of no use. The 
dwarfs were firing from the tops of the 
trees ; they crept through the tall grass 
close up to us, and shot their arrows in 
our faces. Then some hundred of us 
cut down banana- trees, tore doors out, 
and houses down, and formed a boma 
at each end ot the street, and then we 
were a little better off, for it was not 
such rapid, random shooting ; we fired 
more deliberately, and after several 
hours drove them off 

Caught the King. 

' ' But they soon came back and fought 
us all that night, so that we could get 
no water, until our captain — oh ! he was 
a brave man, he was a lion ! — held up 
a shield before him, and looking around, 
he just ran straight where the crowd 
was thickest ; and he seized two of the 
dwarfs, and we who followed him 
caught several more, for they would 
not run away until they saw what our 
design was, and then they left the watei 
clear. We filled our pots and carried 
the little Shaitans (devils) into the 
boma ; and there we found that we had 
caught the king. We wanted to kill 
him, but our captain said no, kill the 
others and toss their heads over the 
wall ; but the king was not touched. 

" Then the dwarfs wanted to make 
peace, but they v/ere on us again in the 
middle of the night, and their arrows 
sounded ' twit,' ' twit ' in all directions. 
At last we ran away, throwing down 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



287 



everything but our guns and swords. 
But many of our men were so weak by 
hunger and thirst that they burst their 
hearts running, and died. Others lying 
down to rest found the little devils close 
to them when too late, and were killed. 
Out of our great number of people only 
thirty returned alive, and I am one of 
them." 

Stanley listened with rapt attention 
to the recital of this wonderful story, 
and at its conclusion he said: "Ah! 
good. Did you see anything else very 
wo'iderful on your journey ? ' ' 

Huge Serpents. 

' ' Oh yes ! There are monstrous ooa- 
constrictors in the forest of Uregga, 
suspended by their tails to the branches, 
waiting for the passerby or for a stray 
antelope. The ants in that forest are 
not to be despised. You cannot travel 
without your body being covered with 
them, when tliey sting you like wasps. 
The leopards are so numerous that you 
cannot go very far without seeing one. 
Every native wears a leopardskin cap. 

" The sokos (gorillas) are in the 
woods, and woe befall the man or woman 
met alone by them ; for they run to you 
and seize your hands, and bite the fin- 
gers off one by one, and as fast as they 
bite oue off, they spit it out. The 
Wasongora Meno and Waregga are can- 
nibals, and unless the force is very 
strong, they never let strangers pass. It 
is nothing but constant fighting. Only 
two years ago a party armed with three 
hundred guns started north of Uson- 
gora Meno ; they only brought sixty 
guns back, and no ivory. If one tries 
fo go by the river, there are falls after 
falls, which carry the people over and 
drown them." 



It required no little heroism on the 
part of Stanley to face the dangers 
which he knew must lie between him 
and that point one thousand eight hun- 
dred miles distant, where the Congo, 
ten miles wide, rolls into the broad 
bosom of the Atlantic. Notwithstand- 
ing all the dangers which lay before 
them, Tipo-tipo agreed to accompany 
Stanley with his soldiers, the distance 
of sixty marches, for $5,000. One would 
naturally suppose that he, of all others, 
would shrink from such a task, seeing 
that in his last effort to reach the unex- 
plored territory beyond, he had lost five 
hundred men. 

Exacting Conditions. 

The conditions under which he agreed 
to escort Stanley were, that the sixty 
marches should not consume more than 
three months' time, and if, when they 
had gone that distance, he should come 
to the conclusion that he could not 
reach the mouth of the Congo, then he 
would return to Nyangwe ; or, if he 
chanced to fall in with any Portuguese 
traders, and desired to accompany them 
to the coast, he should give him (Tipo- 
tipo) two-thirds of his force, as a guard 
to protect him while on his return to 
Nyangwe. 

But Stanley did not propose to have 
all the conditions on the side of the 
chief, and after refusing to grant the 
chief two-thirds of his force to protect 
him on his return, he made the follow- 
ing condition : Should Tipo-tipo fail to 
perform faithfully his part, and should 
he through fear return before the sixty 
marches had been made, he should for- 
feit the $5,000, and not be allowed a 
single man of Stanley's force to accom- 
pany him on his return. After some 



288 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



delay the chief assented to the contract 
as written by Stanley, and both men 
signed it. 

Before it had been signed, however, 
Stanley went to Pocock and told him 
just how matters stood, and showed him 
the dangers which must attend any 
attempt to proceed, but could they do 
so, it would draw upon the expedition 
the comments of the entire world. It 
was a fearful risk to run, but Pocock 
resolved to stand by him, and before he 
had finished, the latter replied, "Go 
on." 

Ah, they little knew when they made 
that agreement, what fate awaited them 
in the near future. The men were 
next informed of the determination to 
push on to the coast, and were told that 
if at the end of sixty marches they fell 
in with traders going eastward, and 
they wished to return to Nyangwe they 
could do so. The men promised to 
remain with him, and he hastened to 
complete his arrangements. 

Journey Begun. 

On November 5 th Tipo-tipo, with 
seven hundred men joined Stanley, and 
they set out on their journey. Stanley 
now carried the Lady Alice across the 
350 miles which intervened between 
Ujiji and Nyangwe, which is situated 
on the Lualaba (of Livingstone), which 
Stanley as well as Cameron believed 
was a branch of the Congo. We shall 
now follow Stanley briefly in his dis- 
covery along that river, which he had 
determined to explore. 

On the 5th of November he set out. 
He reinforced his following, and took 
supplies for six months. He had with 
him 1 40 rifles and seventy spearmen 
and could defy the warlike tribes of 



which he had heard so much, and he 
made up his mind to "stick to the 
Lualaba fair or foul!" For three 
weeks he pushed his way along the 
banks, meeting with tremendous diffi- 
culties, till all became disheartened. 
Stanley said he would try the river. 
The Lady Alice was put together and 
launched, and then the leader declared 
he would never quit it until he reached 
the sea. "All I ask," said he to his 
men, "is that you follow me in the 
name of God." 

"In the name of God, master, we 
will follow you," they replied. They 
did, bravely. 

Paissing the Rapids. 

A skirmish occurred at the outset, by 
the Ruiki river, and then the Ukassa 
rapids were reached. These were passed 
in safety, one portion of the expedition 
on the bank, the remainder in canoes. 
So the journey continued, but under 
very depressing circumstances, for the 
natives, when not hostile, openly left 
their villages, and would hold no com- 
munication with the strangers. Sick- 
ness was universal. Small-pox, dysen- 
tery, and other diseases raged, and 
every day a body or two was tossed into 
the river. A canoe was found, repaired, 
and constituted the hospital, and so was 
towed down stream. 

On the 8th of December a skirm- 
ish occurred, but speedily ended in 
the defeat of the savages, who had 
used poisoned arrows. At Vinya-Njara 
again, another serious fight ensued, 
the savages rushing against the stock- 
ades which surrounded the camp, 
and displaying great determination. 
The attack was resumed at night. At 
daybreak, a part of the native town 



t*? 




CAPTAIN DREYFUS BEFORE THE COURT-MARTIAL AT RENNES, FRANCE 

IN DECEMBER, 1894, HE WAS TRIED BY COURT-MARTIAL AND CONVICTED OF TREASON. IN 

JUNE, 1899, HE WAS RETURNED FROM EXILE FOR A NEW TRIAL, WHICH RESULTED 

AGAIN IN CONVICTION. WITH A RECOMMENDATION TO MERCY. HE WAS 

IMMEDIATELY PARDONED BY PRESIDENT LOUBET 




PROF. CHARLES E. 



COPYRI HTi lauo, ey QESSFORD * VAN BRUNK 

TRIPLER 



HE IS TO LIQUID AIR WHAT EDISON IS TO ELECTRICITY. THIS NEW AND GREAT DISCOVERY IS 
DESTINED TO REVOLUTIONIZE EVERYTHING PERTAINING TO THE SUPPLY OF MOTIVE POWER 
FOR TRANSPORTATION, MACHINERY, REFRIGERATION, MANUFACTURE OF POWERFUL EVPlOS 
VES, Etc. THE ABOVE ILLUSTRATION SHOWS A HAMMER OF FROZEN MERCURY. 





THE BALLOON USED IN MODERN WARFARE 




QUEEN VICTORIA LISTENING TO A DISPATCH 
OF WAR IN SOUTH AFRICA 



FROM THE SEAT 




J 




STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



289 



was occupied, and there again the fighr- 
ing was continued. The village was 
held, but the natives were still deter- 
mined and again attacked ; the arrows 
fell in clusters, and it was a very critical 
time for the voyagers. 

Mutiny in Camp. 

Fortunately the land division arrived 
and settled the matter ; the savages 
disappeared, and the marching detach- 
ment united with Stanley's crews. That 
night Pocock was sent out to cut away 
the enemy's canoes and that danger was 
over. But now the Arab escort which 
had joined Stanley at Nyangwe became 
rebellious, and infected the rest. Stan- 
ley feared that all his people would 
mutiny, but he managed them with a 
firm and friendly hand. So that danger 
passed. All this time the people had 
been dying of fever, small -pox, and 
poisoned arrows, and the constant at- 
tacks of the enemy prevented burial of 
the dead or attendance on the sick and 
wounded. 

On the 26th of December, after a 
merry Christmas, considering the cir- 
cumstances, the expedition embarked, 
149 in all, and not one deserted. To- 
morrow would echo the cry " Victory 
or Death." The explorers passed into 
the portals of the Unknown, and on 
4tli January they reached a series of 
cataracts, now named Stanley Falls. 
This was a cannibal country, and the 
man-eaters hunted the voyagers " like 
game.'' For four and twenty days the 
conflict continued, fighting, foot by foot, 
the forty miles or so which were cov- 
ered by the cataracts, and which the 
expedition had to follow by land, forag- 
ing, fighting, encamping, dragging the 
fleet of canoes, all the time with their 
'9 



lives in their hands, cutting their way 
through the forest and their deadly 
enemies. 

Yet as soon as he had avoided the 
cannibals on land, they came after him 
on the water. A flotilla of fifty-four 
canoes, some enormous vessels, with a 
total of nearly two thousand warriors, 
were formidable obstacles in the way. 
But gun-powder won the day, and the 
natives were dispersed with great loss, 
the village plundered of its ivory, which 
was very plentiful, and the expedition 
in all this lost only one man, making 
the sixteenth since the expedition had 
left Nyangwe. 

Grand Cataracts. 

Some of the cataracts Stanley de- 
scribes as magnificent, the current boil- 
ing and leaping in brown waves six 
feet high. The width in places is 2,000 
and 1,300 feet narrowing at the falls. 
After the great naval battle, Stanley 
found friendly tribes who informed him 
the river, the Lualaba, which he had 
named the Livingstone, was surely the 
Congo, or the River of Congo. Here 
was a great geographical secret now 
disclosed, and success seemed certain. 
It was attained, but at a great price, as 
we shall see. More battles followed 
the peaceful days ; then the friendly 
tribes were again met with, and so on, 
until the warfare with man ceased, and 
the struggle with the Congo began in 
earnest. 

There are fifty-seven cataracts and 
rapids in the course of the river from 
Nyangwe to the ocean, a distance of 
eighteen hundred miles. One portion 
of one hundred and eighty miles took 
the explorers five months. The high 
cliffs and the dangerous banks required 



290 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



the greatest caution to pass, and had 
Stanley not determined to cling to the 
river ; had he led his men by land past 
the cataract region, he would have done 
better, as the events prove. During that 
terrible passage he lost precious lives, 
including the brave Pocock and Kalulu 
— the black boy, Stanley's favorite who 
proved to be of great service. 

Livingstone Falls. 

March 12th found them in a wide 
reach of the river, named Stanley Pool, 
and below that they " for the first time 
heard the low and sullen thunder of 
Ivivingstone Falls." From this date 
the river was the chief enemy, and at 
the cataracts the stream flows "at the 
rate of thirty miles an hour!" The 
canoes suffered or were lost in the 
" cauldron," and portages became nec- 
essary. The men were hurt also ; even 
Stanley had a fall, and was half stunned. 
There were sundry workers, and seven- 
teen canoes remaining on the 27th of 
March. 

The descent was made along the 
shore below Rocky Island Falls, and in 
gaining the camping-place Kalulu, in 
the " Crocodile " canoe, was lost. This 
boat got into mid-stream, and went glid- 
ing over the smooth, swift river to de- 
struction. Nothing could save it or its 
occupants. It whirled round three or 
four times, plunged into the depths, 
and Kalulu and his canoe-mates were 
no more. Nine men, including others 
in other canoes, were lost that day. 

Says Stanley; "I led the way down 
the river, and in five minutes was in a 
new camp in a charming cove, with the 
cataract roaring loudly about 500 yards 
below us. A canoe came in soon after 
with a gleeful crew, and a second one 



also arrived safe, and I was about con- 
gratulating myself for having done a 
good day's work, when the long canoe 
which Kalulu had ventured in was seen 
in mid-river, rushing with the speed of 
a flying spear towards destruction. A 
groan of -horror burst from us as we 
rushed to the rocky point which shut 
the cove from view of the river. 

"When we had reached the point, 
the canoe was half-way over the first 
break of the cataract, and was then just 
beginning that fatal circling in the 
whirlpool below. We saw them signal- 
ing to us for help ; but alas! what could 
we do there, with a cataract between 
us ? We never saw them more. A pad- 
dle was picked up about forty miles 
below, which we identified as belong- 
ing to the unfortunate coxswain, and 
that was all." 

An Untimely Death. 

Stanley felt this loss keenly, tor he 
loved Kalulu almost like a younger 
brother. The boy had been presented 
to him by the Arabs of Unyanyembe on 
the occasion of his first visit there in 
search of Livingstone. He was then a 
mere child, but very bright and quick 
for one of his race and age. Stanley 
took him to the United States, where 
he attended school eighteen months, 
and rapidly developed into an intelli- 
gent and quick-witted youth. Wher 
Stanley was preparing for his secon(^ 
expedition Kalulu begged to be allowed 
to accompany him, and he cheerfully 
granted the request. His untimely 
death made so deep an impression upon 
Stanley that he named the fatal cataract 
Kalulu Falls in honor of his memory. 

Three out of the four men contained 
in the boat were special favorites of 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



291 



Stanley. They had been deceived by 
the smooth, glassy appearance of the 
river, and had pulled out boldly into 
the middle of it, only to meet a dreadful 
fate. Even while they gazed upon the 
spot where the frail craft was last seen 
upon the edge of the brink, another 
canoe came into sight, and was hurried 
on by the swift current towards the 
yawning abyss. As good fortune would 
have it, they struck the falls at a point 
less dangerous than that struck by the 
unfortunate Kalulu, and passed them 
in safety. Then they worked the canoe 
closer to the shore, and springing over- 
board, swam to the land. If those yet 
to come were to be deceived by the ap- 
pearance of the river, Stanley saw that 
he was destined to lose the greater part 
of his men. 

"I Am Lost, Master." 
In order to prevent so sad a calamity, 
he sent messengers up the river to tell 
those yet to come down to keep close 
to the shore. Before they had time to 
reach those above, another canoe shot 
into sight and was hurried on to the 
edge of the precipice. It contained but 
one person — the lad Soudi, who, as he 
shot by thein, cried out : " There is but 
one God — I am lost, master." The next 
instant he passed over the falls. The 
canoe, after having passed the falls, did 
not sink, but was whirled round and 
round by the swift current, and was at 
last swept out of sight behind a neigh- 
boring island. The remainder of the 
canoes succeeded in reaching the camp 
in safety. 

The natives at this point proved very 
friendly, and exchanged provisions for 
beads and wire. Having obtained all the 
provisions that they could conveniently 



^ carry, they prepared to start, and on 
the first of April succeeded in passing 
round the dangerous falls, when they 
again went into camp. A great sur- 
prise awaited them here. They had 
scarcely pitched their tents, when to 
their great surprise Soudi suddenly 
walked into the camp. It was as though 
one had indeed risen from the dead, and 
for a few minutes they could scarcely 
realize that it was the real Soudi that 
they beheld, and not his ghost. Great 
was their joy when the lad assured them 
that it was himself and not his spirit 
that they saw. 

Swam Ashore. 

Seated around their camp they list- 
ened to the strange tale that the boy 
had to tell him. He had been carried 
over the falls, and when he reached the 
bottom he was somewhat stunned by 
the shock, and did not fully recover 
his senses until the boat struck against 
a large rock ; he then jumped out and 
swam ashore. He had hardly placed 
his foot upon the land before he was 
seized by two men, who bound him 
hand and foot, and carried him to the 
top of a large mountain near by. They 
then stripped him, and examined him 
with great curiosity. On the day fol- 
lowing, a large number of the tribe who 
dwelt upon the mountain came to see 
him, and among them was one who had 
previously visited Stanley's camp, and 
knew that Soudi was attached to his 
force. 

He told them great stories about 
Stanley, how terrible he was, and what 
strange arms he carried, which were so 
arranged that they could be fired all 
day without stopping, and ended b;^ 
telling them that if they wished to es- 



292 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



cape his fury, they had better return 
the boy to the place from which they 
had taken him. Terrified by such tales, 
these men at once carried Soudi to the 
place where they had found him, and 
after having told him to speak a good 
word for them to his master, departed. 
He at once swam across the stream, 
stopping occasionally upon the rocks 
to rest, and succeeded at last in reach- 
in g^ the camD soon after it had been 
established. His captors, however, did 
not return to their people as he had 
supposed, but crossing the river at a 
point lower down, they soon after ar- 
rived at the camp and attached them- 
selves to Stanley's force. 

Singular Mishap. 

The dangers attending Stanley con- 
stantly in this great journey from sea 
to sea are strikingly illustrated by a 
mishap which befell one of his men in 
that part of the tour we are now de- 
scribing. 

At one point there were many islands 
in the river, which often afforded Stan- 
ley refuge when attacked by the mur- 
derous natives. They appeared very 
beautiful, but the travellers could not 
enjoy their beauty, so frequent were 
the attacks made upon them. Stanley 
visited several villages, in which he 
says he found human bones scattered 
about, just as we would throw away 
oyster shells after we had removed the 
bivalves. Such sights as this did not 
tend to place the men in the most agree- 
able state of mind, for it seemed to 
them just as if they were doomed to a 
similar fate. 

On the following day they began 
to make preparations for passing the 
rapids which lay below them. In order 



to do this, he must first drive back the 
savages which lined the shore. Land- 
ing with thirty-six men, he succeeded 
in doing so, after which he was able to 
cut a passage three miles long around 
the falls. Stations were established at 
different points along the route, and 
before daylight the canoes were safely 
carried to the first of these. 

Hard Travelling. 

The savages then made aii attacic 
upon them, but were beaten off. At 
night the boats were carried to the next 
station, and the one following to the 
next, and so on, until at the end of 
seventy-eight hours of constant labor, 
and almost unceasing fighting, they 
reached the river. But they had gone 
but a short distance, when they found 
that just before them were a series of 
rapids extending two miles. These 
being much smaller than those they 
had passed before, an attempt was made 
to float the boats down them. 

Six canoes passed the falls in safety, 
but the seventh was upset. One of the 
persons in it was a negro named Zaidi, 
who, instead of swimming to the shore 
as the others did, clung to the boat and 
was hurried on to the cataract below 
him. The canoe did not, however, pass 
immediately over, but striking a rock 
which stood upon the very edge of the 
falls, it was split, one part passing over, 
while the other was jammed against 
the rock. To this Zaidi clung in terror, 
while the waves dashed angrily around 
him. 

Instead of attempting to render assist- 
ance to the endangered man, the natives 
stood upon the shore and howled most 
unmercifully, and at last sent for Stan- 
ley. The latter at once set them at 



STANLEY'S JOURNKYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



29h 



work making a rattan rope, by which 
he proposed to let a boat down to the 
man, into which he could get and be 
pulled ashore. 

But the rope proved too weak, and 
was soon snapped in twain and the boat 
carried over the falls. Other and stouter 
ropes were then laid up, three pieces of 
which were fastened to a canoe. But 
it was useless to send the boat out with- 
out some one to guide it to the place 
where Zaidi was, and Stanley looked 
about for volunteers. No one seemed 
inclined to undertake the dangerous 
job, until the brave Uledi quietly said, 
" I will go." And he did. Two of the 
cables attached to the boat were held 
by men on the shore, while the third 
was to be used to enable the poor wretch 
upon the rock to reach the boat. Sev- 
eral efforts were made to place it within 
his reach, but each in turn failed. 

Over the Falls. 

At last, however, he grasped it, and 
orders were given for the boat to be 
pulled ashore. No sooner were the 
cables tightened than they snapped like 
small cords, and Zaidi was carried over 
the falls ; but holding on to the rope, 
he pulled the boat against the rock, 
in which position it became wedged. 
Uledi pulled him up and assisted him 
into the boat, when they both scrambled 
upon the rock. A rope was thrown to 
them, but failed to reached the spot 
where they were. 

This was repeated several times, until 
at last they succeeded in catching it. 
A heavy rope was then tied to it, which 
the men drew towards them and fas- 
tened to the rock, and thus communi- 
cation was established between those 
upon the rock and those upon the shore. 



By this time darkness shut in upon 
them, and they were forced to leave the 
men upon their wild perch, and wait 
for another day before attempting to get 
them oflf. The next day they succeeded 
in drawing them both to the shore. 

Lost in the Whirlpool. 

On June 3d another accident occurred 
at Masassa whirlpool, which was more 
deplorable than all the others. Frank 
Pocock, who had been Stanley's main- 
stay and next in command to himself, 
attempted to shoot the rapids against 
the advice of his experienced boatman, 
Uledi, who was the bravest native con- 
nected with the expedition, though a 
Zanzibar freed man. 

Pocock was warned of the danger of 
such an undertaking, but with a rash- 
ness quite unlike himself he ordered 
the canoe pushed out into the stream. 
As they approached nearer and nearer 
the mad breakers Frank realized his 
peril, but it was too late. They were 
soon caught in the dreadful whirl of 
waters and sucked under with a mighty 
force sufficient to swallow up a ship. 
Pocock was an expert swimmer, but 
his art did not now avail him, for he 
was swept away to his death, though 
his eight companions saved themselves. 

The dreadful news was borne to 
Stanley by the brave Uledi. This last 
and greatest calamity, coming in the 
midst of his already heavy weight of 
woe, so overcame the great explorer 
that he wept bitter tears of anguish. 

" My brave, honest, kindly-natured 
Frank," he exclaimed, "have you left 
me so ? Oh, my long-tried friend, what 
fatal rashness ! Ah, Uledi, had you but 
saved him, I should have made you a 
rich man." 



294 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



Of the three brave boys who sailed 
away from England with Stanley to 
win the laurels of discovery in the un- 
known wilds of Africa, not one was 
left, but all were now slumbering for 
eternity, in that strange land, where 
the tears of sorrowing friends and 
relatives could never moisten their rude 
beds of earth. 

The descent by river had cost Stan- 
ley Pocock, many of the natives, i8,- 
cx)0 dollars worth of ivory, twelve 
canoes, and a mutiny, not to mention 
grave anxiety and incessant cares and 
conflicts. After a weary time, nearly 
starved, the remainder of the expedi- 
tion, reduced to 1 1 5 persons, sent on to 
Embomma a message for help and food. 
The letter was as follows : 

"Village Nsanda, 

August 4th, 1877. 
" To any gentleman who speaks 
English at Embomma^ 

' ' Dear Sir : — I have arrived at this 
place from Zanzibar with one hundred 
and fifteen souls, men, women and chil- 
dren. We are now in a state of immi- 
nent starvation. We can buy nothing 
from the natives, for they laugh at our 
kinds of cloth, beads and wire. There 
are no provisions in the country that 
may be purchased except on market- 
days, and starving people cannot afford 
to wait for these markets. I have 
therefore made bold to despatch three 
of my young men, natives of Zanzibar, 
with a boy named Robert Fergui, of 
the English mission at Zanzibar, with 
this letter, craving relief from you. 

"I do not know you, but I am told 
there is an Englishman at Embomma, 
and as you are a Christian and a gen- 
tleman, I beg of you not to disregard 



my request. The boy Robert will be 
better able to describe jur condition 
than I can tell you in a letter. We are 
in a state of great distress, but, if your 
supplies arrive in time, I may be able 
to reach Embomma in four days. I 
want three hundred cloths, each four 
yards long, of such quality as you trade 
with, which is very different from that 
we have ; but better than all would be 
ten or fifteen man-loads of rice or grain 
to fill their pinched bellies immediately, 
as even with the cloths it would require 
time to purchase food, and starving 
men cannot wait. 

Must Have Supplies. 
"The supplies must arrive within 
two days, or I may have a fearful time 
of it among the dying. Of course I 
hold myself responsible for any expense 
you may incur in this business. What 
is wanted is immediate relief, and I 
pray you to use your utmost energies 
to forward it at once. For myself, if 
you have such little luxuries as tea, 
coffee, sugar and biscuit by you, such 
as one man can easily carry, I beg you, 
on my own behalf, that you will send 
a small supply, and add to the great 
debt of gratitude due to you upon the 
the timely arrival of supplies for my 
people. Until that time, I beg you to 
believe me 

" Yours sincerely, 

" H. M. Stanley, 
" Commanding Anglo-American Expe-^ 
'■'' dition for Exploration of Africa. 

" p. S. — You may not know m> 
name ; I therefore add, I am the person 
that discovered Livingstone. 

"H, M.S.." 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



29ft 



When the letter was finished, Stanley 
gathered his men around him, and told 
them that he intended to send to Em- 
bomma for food, and desired to know 
who among them would go with the 
guides and carry the letter. No sooner 
had he asked the question, than Uledi 
sprang forward, exclaiming, " O, mas- 
ter, I am ready!" Other men also 
volunteered, and on the next day they 
set out with the guides. 

Deserted by the Guides. 
Before they had got half way, the 
guides left them, and they had to find 
their way as best they could. Passing 
along the banks of the Congo, they 
reached the village soon after sunset, and 
delivered the letter into the hands of a 
kindly disposed person. For thirty 
hours the messengers had not tasted 
food, but they were now abundantly 
supplied. On the following morning 
—it was the 6th of August— they 
started to return, accompanied by car- 
riers who bore provisions for the half- 
starving men, women, and children, 
with Stanley. 

Meanwhile, he and his weary party 
were pushing on as fast as their tired 
and wasted forms would let them. At 
nine o'clock in the morning they 
stopped to rest. While in this situation, 
an Arab boy suddenly sprang from his 
seat upon the grass, and shouted : 
" I see Uledi coming down the hill!" 
Such was indeed the fact, and as the 
jaded men wearily turned their eyes to 
the hill, half expecting to be deceived, 
they beheld Uledi and Kacheche run- 
ning down the hill, followed by carriers 
loaded with provisions. It was a glad 
sight to them, and with one accord they 
shouted: ''La H Allah, il Allah/'' 



(' ' We are saved, thank God ! " ) Uledi 
was the first to reach the camp, and at 
once delivered a letter to his master. 

Thanks for Supplies. 
By the time Stanley had finished 
reading it, the carriers arrived with the 
provisions, and need we say that those 
half-starved people did them justice? 
Deeply grateful for the substantial ans- 
wer to his letter, he immediately penned 
another, acknowledging their safe ar- 
rival. The letter ran as follows : 

"Dear Sirs:— Though strangers I 
feel we shall be great friends, and it 
will be the study of my lifetime to re- 
member my feelings of gratefulness 
when I first caught sight of your sup- 
plies, and my poor faithful and brave 
people cried out, ' Master, we are saved 
—food is coming!' The old and the 
young men, the women and the child- 
ren lifted their wearied and worn-out 
frames and began lustily to chant an 
extemporaneous song in honor of the 
white people by the great salt sea (the 
Atlantic), who had listened to their 
prayers. I had to rush to my tent to 
hide the tears that would come, despite 
all my attempts at composure. 

" Gentlemen, that the blessing of God 
may attend your footsteps, whitherso- 
ever you go, is the very earnest prayer of 
" Yours faithfully, 

" Henry M. Stanley." 

It was a daring undertaking — that of 
marching from one ocean to the other 
through the wilds of Africa — but it was 
done. The great feat was accomplished. 
The magnificent miracle was performed. 
Heroism and self-sacrifice had their sub- 
lime triumph. Perils and hardships be- 
set the expedition from first to last. 



298 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



Mr. Stanley's own words can best de- 
scribe them. 

" On all sides," he says, "death stared 
us in the face; cruel eyes watched us 
by day and by night, and a thousand 
bloody hands were ready to take ad- 
vantage of the least opportunity. We 
defended ourselves like men who knew 
that pusillanimity would be our ruin 
among savages to whom mercy is a 
thing unknown. I wished, naturally, 
that it might have been otherwise, and 
looked anxiously and keenly for any 
sign of forbearance or peace. My anx- 
iety throughout was so constant, and 
the effects of it, physically and other- 
wise, have been such, that I now 
find myself an old man at thirty- 
five." 

Had Seen Hard Service. 

As if to give force to this last state- 
ment, the President of the American 
Geographical Society said : " It will be 
remembered that when we saw Mr. 
Stanley here in the Society, his hair 
was black ; it is now said to be nearly 
white. Of the 350 men with whom he 
left Zanzibar in 1874, but 115 reached 
the Atlantic coast, and 60 of those, 
when at the journey's end, were suffer- 
ing from dysentery, scurvy and dropsy. 
He was on the Congo from November 
I, 1876, to August 1 1, 1877 — a period of 
over nine months ; so that his promise 
to the native followers was fulfilled 
that he would reach the sea before the 
close of the year." 

The historic Nile gave up the mys- 
tery of its source, and the Congo was 
no longer a puzzle, baffling the exploits 
of modern exploration. 

Stanley showed that the Lualaba is 
the Congo, and opened up a splendid 



water-way into the interior of the Dark 
Continent, which the International 
Association had already fixed upon, and 
which rival explorers discussed with 
more or less acrimony. Stanley put 
together the puzzle of which Burton, 
Speke, Livingstone, Baker, Du Chaillu, 
and Cameron provided pieces, and made 
the greatest geographical discovery of 
the century — and of many centuries. 
We cannot limit the results which will 
accrue from this feat of Henry M. Stan- 
ley in crossing the Dark Continent, over 
which he shed the light of civilization. 

Public Honors. 

Stanley was received with great cere- 
mony in England, and almost every 
nation hastened to bestow its honors 
upon him. But among them all he 
singled out one, concerning which he 
said: " For another honor I have to ex- 
press my thanks — one which I may be 
pardoned for regarding as more precious 
than all the rest. The Government of 
the United States has crowned my suc- 
cess with its official approval, and the 
unanimous vote of thanks passed in 
both houses of Congress, has made me 
proud for the life of the expedition and 
its success." 

Towards the end of 1886 Stanley was 
summoned from America to take com- 
mand of the expedition for the relief of 
Emin Pasha, the great German ex- 
plorer, who was lost in the wilds of 
Africa. On February 22, 1887, he ar- 
rived at Zanzibar ; on the 25 th he, his 
officers and the Zanzibar porters, Soma- 
lis and Soudanese soldiers sailed for the 
mouth of the Congo, where they landed 
on the 1 8th of March. On June 15th 
the expedition had reached the village 
of Yambuya, 1300 miles from the sea. 



STANLEY'S JOURNEYS ACROSS AFRICA. 



m 



on the left bank of the Aruwimi, 96 
miles above its confluence with the 
Congo. 

Here Stanley divided his forces. He 
left at Yambuya camp a large number 
of loads, which were to be brought on 
as soon as porters were provided by the 
Arab traveller and merchantman, Tipo- 
tipo. The entire force which left Zan- 
zibar numbered, all told, 706 men. 
Between Zanzibar,and Yambuya it was 
reduced to 649. Of this number 389, 
including Stanley and five Europeans, 
made up the advance force, the garri- 
son at Yambuya numbered 129, and a 
contingent 131 strong was shortly to 
join the Yambuyan camp from Bo- 
lobo. 

Major Barttelot was left in command 
of the rear column, and on June 28th 
Stanley set out on his forced march 
through the forest. It is impossible to 
follow here in detail the story of Stan- 
ley's indomitable struggle with almost 
insurmountable [obstacles. Disaster 
overtook the rear column ; its leader. 
Major Barttelot, was assassinated ; Jame- 
son, the next in command, died of fever, 
and Bonny alone remained at the camp. 
For many months no news of Stanley 
reached Europe ; then came rumors of 
disaster; and finally the news that 



Emin and Stanley had joined hands on 
the shores of the Albert Nyanza. 

The return journey was made by an 
overland route to the east coast, and 
Bagamoyo was reached on December 
4, 1889. Apart from the main object 
of Stanley's journey this expedition 
established the existence of a vast tropi- 
cal forest to the west of the lake coun- 
try, and occupying the northern portion 
of the Congo basin. 

In 1890 Stanley, after recruiting his 
health in Egypt and the South of 
France, returned to London and met 
with a reception almost royal in its 
splendor. He was everywhere feasted 
and feted. The Royal Geographical 
Society bestowed on him a special gold 
medal, and replicas were also presented 
to his officers on the Emin Relief Ex- 
pedition ; and Oxford, Cambridge, Ed- 
inburg and Durham conferred on him 
honorary degrees. 

This is one of the most celebrated 
expeditions on record. We now have 
on the map of Africa what is known as 
the Congo Free State, a name that did 
not exist before the discoveries of Stan- 
ley. His achievements in the dark 
continent form one of the most inter- 
esting, romantic and heroic chapters in 
the annals of exploration. 



CHAPTER XX. 



Travels and Adventures of Vambery in Central Asia. 



(5 1 HIS distinguished traveller is a 
* I native of Hungary. Impelled 

by the desire of ascertaining the 
relation of his native language to the 
Turco-Tartarian tongues, he went first 
to Constantinople, whence, after sev- 
eral years' residence, he set out for 
Samarcand, the capital of the famous 
conqueror, Timour. 

Teheran, the modern capital of Per- 
sia, was reached in the middle of July, 
1862, but, owing to the war having 
commenced between Dost Mohammed 
and Ahmed Khan, the ruler of Herat, 
he did not leave that city until the end 
of the following March. As a means 
of more readily accomplishing the ob- 
jects of his journey, he assumed the 
character of a dervish, or mendicant 
pilgrim, on his way to the shrines of 
Moslem saints. This character, his ac- 
quaintance with Oriental languages, 
and with Mohammedan manners and 
customs, qualified him to assume with- 
out much fear of detection ; and thus 
it was that he left Teheran in company 
with more than a score of Tartar pil- 
grims, a motly group of merchants, 
artisans, soldiers, and beggars, some 
mounted on asses, others trudging on 
foot, and mostly attired in the ragged 
garb of mendicancy. 

Taking a north-easterly course, up 
the slopes of the Elburz mountains, the 
travellers entered the great defile of 
Mazendran, from which they looked 
down upon the primaeval forests of the 
brightest verdure. 

298 



From this defile they entered upon 
the causeway made by Shah Abbas, 
but now fast decaying, resting at night 
in the midst of a beautiful forest of box. 
Next day they reached Sari, the chief 
town of Mazendran, and surrounded 
by groves of orange and lemon trees, 
the brightly-tinted fruit of which pre- 
sented a charming contrast to their 
dark green foliage. Here they had to 
hire horses for a day's journey through 
the marshes between the woods and 
the shores of the Caspian Sea, on which 
they were to voyage in a small coasting 
vessel to Gomushtepe, a Turcoman vil- 
lage at the western extremity of Alex- 
ander's wall, which, according to the 
dwellers in that region, was built by 
genii at the Macedonian conqueror's 
command. 

The pilgrims lingered three weeks in 
this place, much against the inclina- 
tion of Vambery, and then continued 
their journey in a north-easterly direc- 
tion, all now riding camels or mules. 
Their way lay at first over grassy plains 
and through marshes, covered with tall 
reeds, which swarmed with wild hogs. 

The Persian mountains had now dis- 
appeared, and all around them, as far 
as they could see, stretched verdant 
plains, dotted here and there with a 
few tents, near which camels were 
grazing. The verdure ceased, and they 
found themselves entering upon the salt- 
marsh through which the Etrek pursues 
its sluggish course to the Caspian. 

To avoid other marshes, formed by 



'Travels and adventures in a^ia. 



29^ 



the overflowing of the river, they had 
to follow a zigzag course, for the most 
part over a sandy tract, on which very 
few tents were visible. Crossing the 
Etrek with some difficulty, owing to 
the softness of the bottom and its 
flooded banks, they held a northward 



them in ruins. Some other ruins were 
seen on the northern summit of Koren- 
taghi, but were passed in the night. 

On the night of the 19th the caravan 
was for a time in a position of great 
peril. They were approaching the Lit- 
tle Balkan ridge, at the foot of which 




VIEW OF TEHERAN — ' 

course over a trackless waste, guided 
during the day by the sun and at night 
by the pole-star. 

On the 1 6th of May the mountainous 
ridge called the Korentaghi was dis- 
cernible in a north-easterly direction, 
and they passed the ruins known as the 
Mesheni Misryan, which Vambery vis- 
ited on the following day, and found to 
be an ancient fortress, consisting of a 
square keep, and four towers, two of 



CAPITAL OF PERSIA. 

are many dangerous salt-marshes, which 
are not distinguishable from the firm 
ground in their vicinity, owing to a 
layer of salt which everywhere covers 
the surface. Warned by the stopping 
of the camels, all sprang down, and 
found the ground quaking and yielding 
beneath them. . Fear rendered every 
one motionless until daybreak, whei? 
they slowly and carefully effected a 
retrograde movement, reaching the foot 



800 



TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES IN ASIA. 



of the hills about ten o'clock next 
morning. 

Along the foot of these hills they 
journeyed until the evening of the 21st, 
when they reached the Great Balkan. 
"The spot where we encamped," says 
Vambery, "was not without its charms ; 
for, as the setting sun projected its rays 
upon the lovely valleys of the Little 
Balkan, one could almost fancy oneself 
actually in a mountainous district. The 
view might even be characterized as 
beautiful ; but there is the idea of a 
fearful desolation, the immense aban- 
donment which covers the whole, as it 
were, with a veil of mourning." 

The Route Lost. 

On the following night about twelve 
o'clock, just as they came upon a steep 
declivity, the guide gave the word for 
all to dismount, as they were entering 
the ancient bed of Oxus, and the storms 
and rains of the preceding winter had 
washed away all traces of the route, 
which had been tolerably well defined 
during the summer. Crossing the old 
course of the river in a crooked line, 
in order to find a way out on the oppo- 
site side, they succeeded by daybreak 
in clambering out upon the plateau 
beyond. 

The pilgrims were at this time suf- 
fering much from thirst, the springs 
which they found having dwindled to 
little pools of turbid and brackish water. 
On the morning of the 24th they had 
reached the extremity of the sandy 
Wste over which they had been toiling, 
and had their hopes of soon meeting 
with drinkable water encouraged by 
coming upon numerous footprints of 
gazelles and wild asses. Some little 
pools of yrain-water were presently 



reached, and from this spot all the way 
to Khiva the water-skins of the pil- 
grims were always full. 

They were now at the foot of the 
plateau of Kaflankir, which rises like 
an island out of a sea of sand, the 
deep trench at its base, which the Tur- 
comans told Vambery was the ancient 
channel of the Oxus, forming the bound- 
ary on that side of the Khanate of Khiva. 
On this plateau the travellers observed 
gazelles and wild asses grazing in large 
herds. About noon on the second day 
they were on it, a great cloud of dust 
was seen towards the north, and the 
Turcoman escort stood to their arms, 
apprehensive of an attack. 

Nearer and nearer came the dust- 
cloud, as if raised by a charging squad- 
ron of cavalry. Hundreds of hoofs were 
clattering over the plateau. Presently 
the sound ceased suddenly, as if the 
troop had halted ; the cloud rolled away, 
and an immense herd of wild asses was 
seen drawn up in line. For a few 
moments they gazed intently at the 
cavalcade, and then galloped away. 

Warm Reception. 
Ozbeg villages now succeeded to the 
brown tents of the wandering tribe of 
the desert, and on the 2d of June the 
domes and minarets of Khiva were 
before them, rising above gardens, and 
cultivated fields, and groves of poplars. 
Vambery entered this town with his 
nerves strung to their extremest ten- 
sion, for he had heard that the Khan 
condemned to slavery all suspected 
strangers. He relied much, however, 
on his knowledge of all the Khivites 
of distinction who had been in Con- 
stantinople, and especially of one, Shu- 
krullah Bey, whom he had seen several 



TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES IN ASIA. 



301 



times at the house of Ali Pacha, some- 
time Minister of Foreign Affairs. 

To Shukrullah Bey he accordingly 
at once proceeded, introducing himself 
as an Effendi who had made the Bey's 
acquaintance in Constantinople, and 
desired to oflfer respects in passing. 
The Bey, though surprised, made eager 
inquiries concerning his numerous 
friends in the Ottoman capital, and the 
events which had occurred since he 
had left that city. Vambery answered 
all his questions with the utmost readi- 
ness, and, as he had anticipated, re- 
ceived next day a present and invita- 
tion from the Khan. 

He found that potenate sitting on a 
dais in the hall of audience, with his 
right hand holding a golden sceptre and 
his left resting on a velvet cushion. 
The interview was satisfactory to both, 
and at its termination the Khan wished 
Vambery to accept a purse of twenty 
ducats and an ass for his further jour- 
ney ; and on the money being declined, 
on the ground that dervishes are vowed 
to poverty, his highness insisted upon 
his visitor becoming his guest during 
his brief stay in his capital. 

A Fertile Country. 
Our traveller did not linger long in 
Khiva, for the heat was growing op- 
pressive, and he wished to push on to 
Bokhara before it became intolerable. 
He now rode the ass presented to him 
by the Khan, and employed the camel to 
carry provisions, with which he was now 
well supplied. The route pursued by 
the caravan until the Oxus was reached 
was through a fertile and well-cultivated 
country, with mulberry trees bordering 
the road, and their berries within reach 
of the traveller who rode in their shade. 



Flood-water rendered the Oxus so 
wide that the farther bank was almost 
indistinguishable. Owing to this ex- 
tent of water, the passage occupied 
from ten in the morning until sunset, 
though the river proper was crossed in 
half an hour. After passing over a few 
miles of tolerably well cultivated land^ 
they entered upon a sandy tract, througk 
which they pursued a south-easterly 
course along the right bank of the river. 
Here and there they came upon a few 
Khirgis tents, at which they were 
always sure of a draught of water or 
milk, which the dust and the intense 
heat must have rendered very acceptable. 

Pleasant News. 

On the fifth day of their journey 
along the banks of the Oxus, which are 
almost everywhere overgrown with wil- 
lows, rushes, and tall sedges, they met 
five horsemen, merchants returning 
from Bokhara to Khiva, and learned 
from them the pleasing intelligence 
that the route was quite safe. This 
communication set their minds at ease, 
for they had heard on leaving Khiva 
that the Tekke Turcomans, taking ad- 
vantage of the absence of the Emir and 
his army from Bokhara, were infesting 
the approaches to that city. 

Their agreeable reflections on this 
score were disturbed soon after daybreak 
next day, however, by meeting two men, 
who informed them that they had been 
robbed of their boots, their provisions, 
and most of their clothing, by a band 
of Tekke Turcomans, numbering about 
a hundred and fifty. Their Afghan 
guide, who had been twice robbed, and 
narrowly escaped with his life, im- 
mediately gave the word to retreat, 
which was done with as much speed 



302 



TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES IN ASIA. 



as was possible with heavily-laden 
camels. 

Having reached their last resting- 
place — the ruins of an ancient fortress 
on a green hill overlooking the Oxus — 
they allowed the camels three hours' 
rest and pasture, while filling their 
water-skins, and then struck into the 
desert, which seemed their only chance 
of evading the plundering Tekke. It 
was sunset when they left the ruins, 
and a few stars were visible when they 
reached the desert ; but the moon had 
not yet risen to betray them to the 
keen sight of the robber horde, and 
they pursued their way in silence, the 
feet of the camels treading almost 
noiselessly upon the fine sand- 

A Suggestive Name. 

The night passed without an alarm. 
" Our morning station," says Vambery, 
"bore the charming appellation of 
Adamkyrylgan (which means ' the place 
where men perish'), and one needed 
only to cast a look at the horizon to 
convince himself how appropriate is 
that name. Let the reader picture to 
himself a sea of sand, extending as far 
as eye can reach, on one side formed 
into hills, like waves, lashed into that 
position by the furious storm, on the 
other side, again, like the smooth waters 
of a still lake, merely rippled by the 
west wind. Not a bird visible in the 
air, not a worm or beetle upon the 
earth ; traces of nothing but departed 
life, in the bleaching bones of man or 
beast that has perished, collected by 
every passer-by in a heap, to guide the 
march of future travellers." 

They were now obliged, notwith- 
standing the heat and dust, to use their 
water sparingly, and they began to suf- 



fer the tortures of thirst. Two of the 
camels died, two of the pilgrims be- 
came exhausted, and had to be bound 
at length upon their camels, and on th^i 
fourth day one of the sufferers died. So 
slow was their progress that they were 
not beyond the desert. And now, with 
the mountains in sight, the hot wind 
and the sand-cloud came, and they had 
to dismount in haste, and lie prostrate 
behind the camels, which fell on their 
knees, and strove to bury their heads 
in the sand. The dust-storm passed 
over them, and left them covered with 
a thick crust of hot sand. 

Scarcity of Water. 

Towards evening they reached a 
spring, but its water was undrinkable, 
and at midnight they started again, 
fevered and feeble, and scarcely able to 
move. Vambery slept from exhaustion, 
and found himself in the morning in a 
hut, surrounded by men, whom he 
found to be Persian slaves, sent from 
Bokhara by their masters to tend sheep, 
By them, poor as they were, he and his 
companions were hospitably and kindly 
treated. 

" I was much touched," he relates, 
"to see amongst them a child five years 
old, also a slave, of great intelligence. 
He had been, two years before, cap- 
tured and sold with his father. When 
I questioned him about the latter, he 
answered me confidingly, ' Yes ; my 
father has bought himself (meaning 
paid his own ransom) ; at longest I shall 
only be a slave two years, for by that 
time my father will have spared the 
necessary money.' The poor child had 
on him hardly anything but a few rags, 
to cover his weak little body ; his skin 
was of the hardness and color of 



-fRAVELS AND ADVENTURES IN ASIA. 



SOS 



leatTier. I gave him one of my own 
articles of attire, and he promised to 
have a dress made out of it for himself." 
Leaving these unhappy slaves with 
mingled feelings of compassion for 



fear of robbers, hot winds, and empty 
water-skins.' ' 

Their next station was a village called 
Khakemir, in the midst of a tolerably 
well-cultivated country, the whole dis- 




DERVISHES AT PRAYER. 



their condition and thankfulness for 
their kindness, our travellers started 
with the intention of making their 
next station, at Khodja Oban, a place to 
which pilgrims resort to visit the grave 
of a Moslem saint; but they lost their 
way at night among the sand hills, and 
found themselves at daybreak on the 
margin of a lake. They were now on 
the borders of Bokhara, and free from 



trict being watered by canals connected 
with the river Zereshan. This was 
crossed next day at a ford, though the 
remains of a stone bridge were visible 
on the farther side, near the ruins of a 
palace said to have been built by the 
renowned Abdullah Khan Sheibani. 
The city of Bokhara was now before 
them, its walls broken in many places, 
and its buildings presenting no traces 



304 



TRAVEI.S AND ADVENTURES IN ASIA. 



of its former grandeur, though it is still 
vaunted by Bokhariots as the capital of 
Central Asia. 

Vambery says the wretchedness of the 
streets and houses far exceed that of the 
meanest in Persian cities, and the dust, 
«, foot deep, give a poor idea of "noble 
Bokhara," as the inhabitants call it; 
the only thing which impressed him 
being the strange and diversified mix 
ture of races and costumes, which pre- 
sent a striking spectacle to the eyes of 
a stranger. 

Vambery was well lodged here, and 
had access to the best society ; but the 
task of maintaining his assumed char- 
acter was a difficult one, and it is 
probable that only the sanctity supposed 
to attach to that character guarded 
his secret. He believed that he was 
suspected, and that many devices were 
resorted to with the view of causing 
him to betray himself 

Strange Traveller. 
"One day," he says, "a servant of 
the Vizier brought to me a little shriv- 
elled individual, that I might examine 
■^im, to see whether he was, as he pre- 
tended, really an Arab from Damascus. 
When he first entered, his features 
struck me much — they appeared to me 
European. When he opened his mouth, 
my astonishment and perplexity in- 
creased, for I found his pronunciation 
anything rather than that of an Arab. 
He told me that he had undertaken a 
pilgrimage to the tomb of Djafen Ben 
Sadik, at Khoten, in China, and wanted 
to proceed on his journey that very day. 
His features during our conversation 
betrayed visible embarrassment, and it 
was a subject of great regret to me that 
I hnd not an occasion to see him a 



second time, for I am strongly disposed 
to think that he was playing a part 
similar to my own." 

Some of the pilgrims being left in 
Bokhara, the caravan was reduced on 
leaving that city to the occupants of a 
couple of carts of very primitive con- 
struction, in which they were jolted 
in a most unpleasant manner, as the 
wheels — far from perfect circles — rolled 
through the deep sand or mud. 

Shut Out of the City. 

Night was chosen for starting, and as 
the driver was not familiar with the 
road he mistook the way, and it was 
morning when the little town of Mezar 
was reached. The journey was resumed, 
therefore, after a brief halt, through a 
fertile and well-cultivated country, more 
refreshing to the eye than anything the 
travellers had seen since they had left 
the Pontos mountains behind them. 

Next morning they reached Kette 
Kurgan, where there is a fortress de- 
fended by a strong wall and a deep 
trench, and, the sun having set, the 
gates were closed, and they had to lodge 
at a caravanserai outside the walls. 
Samarcand was reached on the sixth 
day, and the first impression made by 
its domes and minarets, brightened by 
the sunbeams, and brought into relief 
by a background of groves and gardens, 
was very pleasing. Of this ancient city 
to which so much historical interest at- 
taches, Vambery says that " although it 
equals Teheran in circumference, its 
houses do not lie so close together ; still, 
the prominent buildings and ruins offer 
a far more magnificent prospect. The 
eye is most struck by four lofty edifices, 
in the form of half-domes, the fronts of 
the Medresses (colleges). 



TRAVELS AND ADVENTUEJES IN ASIA. 



305 



" As we advance, we p^erceive first a 
small neat dome, and further to the 
south a larger and more imposing one ; 
the former is the tomb, the latter the 
mosque, of Timour, Quite facing us, 
on the south-westerly limit of the city, 
on a hill, rises the citadel, round which 
other mosques and tombs are grouped- 
If we suppose the whole intermixed 
with closely-planted gardens, we have a 
faint idea of Samarcand." 

Dazzling Splendor. 

Like all eastern cities, this '* focus of 
the whole globe," as a Persian poet 
calls it, shows best at a distance ; but 
many of its antiquities are interesting 
even to Europeans. The summer pal- 
ace of Timour retains much of its 
ancient splendor, being approached by 
an ascent of forty broad marble steps, 
and containing apartments with mosaic 
floors, the colors of which are as bril- 
liant as if they had been executed by 
the present generation of workmen. 
Three flags, a breastplate, and an old 
sword, doubtful relics of the great 
Emir, were shown to our traveller by 
the custodian. 

The mosque of Timour has a melon- 
shaped dome, and is rich in decorations 
of colored bricks and inscriptions from 
the Koran in gold letters. The mosque 
of Shah Zindel exhibits similar mural 
decorations, but they are defaced in 
many places, and the arched gateway 
shows the ravages of time in its broken 
brickwork. The citadel contains the 
reception-hall of Timour, with the cel- 
ebrated green stone upon which the 
conquering Emir had his throne placed. 

The tomb of Timour consists of a 
neat chapel, surmounted by a splendid 
central dome and two smaller ones, and 
20 



surrounded by a wall, in which is a 
high arched gate. The tomb is under 
the central dome, and is covered with 
a flat dark-green stone. The walls of 
the chapel are covered internally with 
alabaster, decorated with arabesque de- 
signs in blue and gold. 

The Emir's Parade. 

Vambery was preparing for his de- 
parture from Samarcand, where he 
stayed only eight days, when the Emir, 
returning from his victorious campaign 
in Khokand, made his triumphal entry 
into the city. There was a great crowd, 
but no particular pomp was displayed. 
Two hundred horsemen rode first, and 
were followed by infantry, with flags 
and drums. 

"The Emir and all his escort," says 
our traveller, "looked, with their snow- 
white turbans and wide silk garments 
of all the colors of the rainbow, more 
like the chorus of women in the opera 
of ' Nebuchadnezzar ' than a troop of 
Tartar warriors. So also it may be 
said with respect to other officers of the 
Court, of whom some bore white staves 
and others halbreds, that there was in 
the whole procession nothing to remind 
one of Turkestan, except in the fol- 
lowers, of whom many were Kiptchaks, 
and attracted attention by their Mongol 
features and the arms which they 
bore consisting of bows, arrows, and 
shields." 

The Emir held a public audience on 
the following day, and Vambery pre- 
sented himself, sustaining his well- 
assumed character of a Mohamedan 
pilgrim with his usual address, and 
again with success. He was advised 
by his friendSj however, to quit Samar- 
cand with all speed, and gain as quickly 



306 



TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES IN ASIA. 



as possible the farther bank of the 
Oxus. He left the city by night, but 
travelled slowly, on account of the 
heat, passing through a well-cultivated 
country, in a south-westerly direc- 
tion; Herat, of which so much has 
been heard of late in connection with 
events in Afghanistan, being the next 
goal. 

Karshi, a town of considerable size 
and commercial importance, was reach- 
ed on the third day, and our traveller 
was surprised to find there a public 
garden, with flower-beds and tea-stalls, 
on a scale which he had not found in 
Bokhara or Saniarcand, or even in 
Persia. He remained there three days, 
and at sunrise on the second day of the 
resumed journey reached the Oxus, on 
the nearer bank of which stands a small 
fort, and on the opposite side, on a 
steep hill, the citadel, around which is 
spread the frontier town of Kerki. 

"Mother of Cities." 
Having to wait here the arrival of 
the caravan for Herat, he availed him- 
self of the delay to visit the ruins of 
ancient Balkh, styled by Oriental writ- 
ers "the mother of cities." Only a 
few heaps of earth are pointed out as 
remains of the ancient Bactra, and 
of the more modern ruins there is no- 
thing more remarkable than a half- 
demolished mosque, built by the Seld- 
joukian Sultan Sandjar in the days 
when Balkh was the centre of Moslem 
':ivilization. 

The caravan in which our traveller 
turned his back upon the Khanate of 
Bokhara consisted of four hundred 
camels, nearly as many asses, and a 
few horses. Some of the men were 
pilgrims, others emancipated slaves re- 



turi'ing to their native countries. The 
country traversed was for some distance 
a barren plain, then, as the north-west- 
ern frontier of Afghanistan was ap- 
proached, it became hilly. 

A broad valley was threaded, and 
then a steep mountain pass was trav- 
ersed, so narrow that the caravan had 
to wind through it in single file. Thence 
they descended into a long valley, 
through which the river Murgab ran 
swiftly, in crossing which Vambery's 
ass fell, and precipitated him into the 
water, amidst the laughter of his com- 
panions. The river was not deep, 
however, and he escaped with no greater 
mishap than a wetting. 

Slow Travelling. 

From this ford to Herat is reckoned 
four days' journey for horses, but camels 
require double that time, the country 
being mountainous. It became wilder 
and more picturesque as the travellers 
advanced, the ruins of old castles 
crowning the precipices between which 
the Murgab pours its foaming stream. 
Beyond the second pass they left the 
river, and proceeded in a westerly di- 
rection, reaching next day the ruins of 
the town and fortress of Kale No, the 
site of which was occupied by a few 
tents of the Hezare, a tribe of mixed 
Tartar and Persian descent. 

Thence to Herat is twenty miles, but 
the way lies over lofty mountains, and 
requires four days for its accomplish- 
ment. The highest summit was passed 
on the second day, and was covered 
with snow, so that the travellers suf- 
fered severely from cold, in spite of the 
great fires which they made when they 
halted. Thence they descended a path 
only a foot wide, along a ledge from 



TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES IN ASIA. 



307 



which a precipice rose above a deep 
ravine. 

Rounding the shoulder of a mountain, 
they looked down upon the broad and 
fertile plains in which Herat stands, 
dotted with villages, and intersected 
by numerous canals. Trees only are 
wanted to complete the charm of the 
b.ndscape. The city, having been re- 
cently besieged by Dost Mahomed, 
presented a ruinous appearance. 

' ' The houses which we passed, the 
advanced works, the very gate," says 
Vambery, " looked like a heap of rub- 
bish. Near the latter is the citadel, 
which, from its elevation, served as a 
mark for the Afghan artillery ; it lies 
there bidSted and half-demolished. The 
doors and windows have been stripped 
of their woodwork, for during the siege 
the inhabitants suffered most from the 
scarcity of fuel. Each step we advance 
we see greater indications of devasta- 
tion. Entire quarters of the town re- 
main solitary and abandoned." 

Means Exhausted. 

Our traveller's resources were by this 
time exhausted, and he was compelled 
to sell his ass. He waited upon an en- 
voy sent by the Governor of Khorassan 
to the young Sirdar of Herat, Yakoub 
Khan, in the hope of obtaining employ- 
ment, but without success. His fellow- 
travellers had dispersed, only one re- 
maining with him — a young man who 
had become attached to him, and event- 
ually accompanied him to Pesth. 

To leave no stone unturned, he waited 
upon Yakoub Khan — then a lad of fif- 
teen — who seemed to penetrate his secret 
immediately; for, regarding him for a 
moment with a look of surprise and 
perplexity, he raised a finger, and smil- 



ingly exclaimed, "I swear you are an 
Englishman ! ' ' Before Vambery could 
reply, he sprang from his chair, and, 
clapping his hands, exclaimed, "Pardon 
me ; but you are an Englishman, are 
you not?" The traveller assumed a 
grave look, and reminded the young 
prince of the proverb attributed by tra- 
dition to the prophet of Mecca, "He 
who takes the believer for an unbeliever 
is himself an unbeliever," 

Welcome from the Prince. 

This rejoinder disconcerted Yakoub, 
who resumed his seat, observing in an 
apologetic tone that he had never before 
seen a hadji from Bokhara with such a 
physiognomy. Vambery replied that 
he was not a Bokhariot, but a Stram- 
bouli; and, producing his Turkish pass- 
port, mentioned Yakoub's cousin, the 
son of Akbar Khan, who was in Con- 
stantinople in i860. The prince then 
spoke very graciously to him, and in- 
vited him to repeat his visit as often as 
he could. 

Two days before he left Herat our 
traveller made an excursion to the vil- 
lage of Gazerghiah, situated on an emi- 
nence a league from the city, and con- 
taining many memorials of antiquity, 
dating from the time of Shah Rookh 
Mirza, a son of Timour. Near the vil- 
lage are the ruins of Mosalla, which 
were also visited. The remains of the 
mosque and sepulchre of Sultan Hoosein 
Mirza, erected 891, displayed a large 
amount of elaborate carving, many of 
the stones being covered with inscrip- 
tions from the Koran. 

On the 15th of November, 1863, Vam- 
bery quitted Herat with the great car- 
avan bound for Meshed, and consistii^g 
of 2,000 persons, about half of whom 



308 



TRAVEIvS AND ADVENTURES IN ASIA. 



were Hezare pilgrims from Cabul, and 
a large proportion of the remainder 
Afghan merchants from that city and 




A PERSIAN OFFICIAL. 

from Candahar. He obtained permis- 
sion to ride upon a lightly-loaded camel 
by representing that he should be able 
to pay when the caravan reached Me- 
shed ; but by this statement he raised 
doubts of the genuineness of the char- 



acter which he had assumed, so far with 
success. 

" The dubious light in which I stood, 
afforded," he says, "a fund of interest- 
ing surmises to those by whom I was 
surrounded ; for whilst some of them 
took me for a genuine Turk, others 
were disposed to think me an English- 
man ; the different parties even quar- 
relled on the subject, and it was very 
droll to observe how the latter began to 
triumph over the former when it was 
observed that, in proportion as we drew 
near to Meshed, the bent posture of 
humility of the dervish began more and 
more to give way to the upright and in- 
dependent deportment of the Euro- 
pean." 

Meshed was reached on the twelfth 
day after the departure of the caravan 
from Herat, and there our traveller was 
hospitably received by Colonel Dol- 
mage, who filled several important 
offices under Murad Mirza, uncle of the 
reigning Shah, and governor of the 
city. 

The disguise was now thrown off, 
and, reflecting that the truth concern- 
ing him would become known at Herat 
on the return of the Afghans who had 
travelled with him from that city, he 
wrote to Yakoub Khan, avowing that 
though not an Englishman, he was a 
European, and complimenting the 
young prince on the acuteness whicb 
had penetrated his disguise. 

For a month he was the honored 
guest of Colonel Dolmage, and then he 
set out for Teheran. That city was 
reached on the 20th of January, 1864, 
and he proceeded immediately to che 
Turkish embassy, whence he had started 
ten months before on his adventurous 
journey. A suite of apartments was 



TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES IN ASIA. 



309 



immediately set apart for him, the 
British and French ambassadors vied 
with each other in showing him kind- 
ness, and the Shah accorded him a 
gracious reception. He remained in 
the Persian capital more than two 
months, and then set out for Constanti- 
nople, via Tabreez and Trebizond. 



Vambery's adventurous journey was 
the most remarkable of any in Central 
Asia during the century, bringing the 
outside world into touch with a part of 
the globe that has remained for ages an 
almost impenetrable mystery to othei 
countries, and at the same time settlinj^ 
many doubtful questions- 



PART IV. 



Great Wars and Battles. 



CHAPTER XXL 
Downfall of Napoleon at Waterloo. 



(5 i HE great battle which ended the 
* I twenty-three years' war of the 
first French Revolution, and 
which quelled the extraordinary man 
whose genius and ambition had so long 
dominated the world, is justly regarded 
as one of those remarkable events that 
appear at long intervals and determine 
the fate of nations. 

Europe, long tossed by wars and con- 
vulsions, at length breathed peacefully. 
Suddenly Napoleon Bonaparte escaped 
from Elba and the whole scene was 
changed as if by the magic of an evil 
spirit. The exertions which the allied 
powers made at this crisis to grapple 
promptly with the French Emperor 
have truly been termed gigantic, and 
never were Napoleon's genius and ac- 
tivity more signally displayed than in 
the celerity and skill by which he 
brought forward all the military re- 
sources of France, which the reverses 
of the three preceding years, and the 
pacific policy of the Bourbons during 
the months of their first restoration, had 
greatly diminished and disorganized. 

He re-entered Paris on the 20th of 
March, 181 5, ajftd by the end of May, 
310 



besides sending a force into La Vendee 
to put down the armed risings of the 
Royalists in that province, and besides 
providing troops under Massena and 
Suchet for the defense of the southern 
frontiers of France, Napoleon had an 
army assembled in the northeast for 
active operations under his own com- 
mand, which amounted to between 120 
and 1 30,000 men, with a superb park of 
artillery, and in the highest possible state 
of equipment, discipline and efficiency. 

The approach of the many Russians, 
Austrians, Bavarians and other foes of 
the French Emperor to the Rhine was 
necessarily slow; but the two most active 
of the allied powers had occupied 
Belgium with their troops while Na- 
poleon was organizing his forces. Mar- 
shal Blucher was there with 116,000 
Prussians, and the Duke of Wellington 
was there also with about 106,000 troops, 
either British or in British pay. 

Napoleon determined to attack these 
enemies in Belgium. The disparity of 
numbers was indeed great, but delay 
was sure to increase the number of his 
enemies much faster than reinforce- 
ments could join his own ranks He con- 




ail 



ai2 



DOWiSTFALt OF NAPOtBON At WATERLOO. 



sidered also that "the enemy's troops 
were cantoned under the command of 
two generals, and composed of nations 
differing both in interest and in feel- 
ings. His own army was under his own 
sole command. It was composed ex- 
clusively of French soldiers, mostly 
veterans, well acquainted with their 
officers and with each other, and full of 
enthusiastic confidence in their com- 
mander. If he could separate the Prus- 
sians from the British, so as to attack 
each in detail, he felt sanguine of suc- 
cess, not only against thcvse, the most 
resolute of his many adversaries, but 
also against the other masses that were 
slowly laboring up against his south- 
eastern frontiers. 

The French Concealed. 

The triple chain of strong fortresses 
which the French possessed on the Bel- 
gian frontier formed a curtain, behind 
which Napoleon was able to concen- 
trate his army, and to conceal till the 
very last moment the precise line of 
attack which he intended to take. On 
the other hand, Blucher and Welling- 
ton were obliged to canton their troops 
along a line of open country of con- 
siderable length, so as to watch for the 
outbreak of Napoleon from whichever 
point of his chain of strongholds he 
should please to make it. 

Blucher, with his army, occupied the 
banks of the Sambre and the Meuse, 
from Liege on his left, to Charleroi on 
his right ; and the Duke of Wellington 
covered Brussels, his cantonments being 
partly in front of that city, and be- 
tween it and the French frontier, and 
partly on its west; their extreme right 
being at Courtray and Tournay, while 
their left approached Charleroi and 



communicated with the Prussian 
right. 

It was upon Charleroi that Napoleon 
resolved to level his attack, in hopes of 
severing the two allied armies from each 
other, and then pursuing his favorite 
tactic of assailing each separately with 
a superior force on the battle-field, 
though the aggregate of their numbers 
considerably exceeded his own. 

Over the Frontier. 

On the 15th of June the French army 
was suddenly in motion, and crossed 
the frontier in three columns, which 
were pointed upon Charleroi and its 
vicinity. The French line of advance 
upon Brussels, which city Napoleon re- 
solved to occupy, thus lay right through 
the centre of the line of the canton- 
ments of the allies. The Prussian gen- 
eral rapidly concentrated his forces, 
calling them in from the left, and the 
English general concentrated his, call- 
ing them in from the right toward the 
menaced centre of the combined posi- 
tion. 

On the morning of the i6th, Blucher 
was in position at Ligny, to the north- 
east of Charleroi, with 80,000 men. 
Wellington's troops were concentrating 
at Quatre Bras, which lies due north of 
Charleroi, and is about nine miles from 
Ligny. On the i6th, Napoleon in per- 
son attacked Blucher, and, after a long 
and obstinate battle, defeated him, and 
compelled the Prussian army to retire 
northward toward Wavre. On the same 
day, Marshal Ney, with a large part of 
the French army, attacked the English 
troops at Quatre Bras, and a very severe 
engagement took place, in which Ney 
failed in defeating the British, but sue 
ceeded in preventing their sending any 



DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON AT WA/ERLOO. 



Slh 



help to Blaclier, who was being beaten 
by the Emperor at Ligny. 

On the news of Blucher's defeat a^ 
Ligny reaching Wellington, he foresaw 
that the Emperor's army would now be 
directed upon him, and he accordingly 
retreated in order to restore his com- 
munications with his ally, which would 
have been dislocated by the Prussians 
falling back from Ligny to Wavre if 
the English had remained in advance 
at Quatre Bras. During the 17th, 
therefore, Wellington retreated, being 
pursued, but little molested by the main 
French array, over about half the space 
between Quatre Bras and Brussels. 

Decides to G-ive Battle. 

This brought him again parallel, on 
a line running from west to east, with 
Blucher, who was at Wavre. Having 
ascertained that the Prussian army, 
though beaten on the i6th, was not 
broken, and having received a promise 
from its general to march to his assist- 
ance, Wellington determined to halt, j 
and to give battle to the French Em- 
peror in the position, which, from a 
village in its neighborhood, has re- 
ceived the ever-memorable name of the 
field of Waterloo. 

When, after a very hard-fought and 
long-doubtful day. Napoleon had suc- 
ceeded in driving back the Prussian 
army from Ivigny, and had resolved on 
marching himself to assail the English, 
he sent, on the T/th, Marshal Grouchy 
with 30,000 men to pursue the defeated 
Prussians, and to prevent their march- 
ing to aid the Duke of Wellington. 
Great recriminations passed afterwards 
between the marshal and the Emperor 
as to how this duty was attempted to 
be performed, and the reasons why 



Grouchy failed on the i8th to arrest 
the lateral movement of the Prussian 
troops from Wavre toward Waterloo. 

It may be sufficient to remark here 
that Grouchy was not sent in pursuit 
of Blucher till late on the 17th, and 
that the force given to him was insuffi- 
cient to make head against the whole 
Prussian army ; for Blucher's men, 
though they were beaten back, and suf- 
fered severe loss at L/igny, were neither 
routed nor disheartened ; and they were 
joined at Wavre by a large division of 
their comrades under General Bulow, 
who had taken no part in the battle of 
the 1 6th, and who were fresh for the 
march to Waterloo against the French 
on the 1 8 th. 

But the failure of Grouchy was in 
truth mainly owing to the indomitable 
heroism of Blucher himself, who, though 
severely injured in the battle at Ligny, 
was as energetic and as active as ever 
in bringing his men into action again, 
and who had the resolution to expose a 
part of his army, under Thielman, to 
be overwhelmed by Grouchy at Wavre 
on the 1 8th, while he urged the march 
of the mass of his troops upon Water- 
loo. " It is not at Wavre, but at Water- 
loo," said the old field-marshal, "that 
the campaign is to be decided ;" and 
he risked a detachment, and won the 
camoaign accordingly. 

In Perfect Agreement. 
Wellington and Blucher trusted each 
other as cordially, and co-operated as 
zealously, as formerly had been the 
case with Marlborough and Eugene. 
It was in full reliance on Blucher's 
promise to join him that the dnke stood 
his ground and fought at Waterloo : 
and those who have ventured to impugn 



314 



DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 



the duke's capacity as a general ought 
to have had common sense enough to 
perceive that to charge the duke with 
having won the battle of Waterloo by 
the belp of the Prussians is really to 
say that he won it by the very means 
on which he relied, and without the 
expectation of which the battle would 
\iot have been fought. 

Wellington Criticized. 

Napoleon himself found fault with 
Wellington for not having retreated 
beyond Waterloo. The short answer 
may be, that the duke had reason to 
expect that his army could singly resist 
the French at Waterloo until the Prus- 
sians came up, and that, on the Prus- 
sians joining, there would be a suffi- 
cient force, united under himself and 
Blucher, for completely overwhelming 
the enemy. 

And while Napoleon thus censures 
his great adversary, he involuntarily 
bears the highest possible testimony 
to the military character of the English, 
and proves decisively of what para- 
mount importance was the battle to 
which he challenged his fearless oppo- 
nent. Napoleon asks, " If the English 
army had been beaten at Waterloo, 
what would have been the use of those 
numerous bodies of troops, of Prussians, 
Austrians, Germans, and Spaniards, 
which were advancing by forced march- 
es to the Rhine, the Alps, and Py- 
renees?" 

The reader may gain a generally ac- 
curate idea of the localities of the great 
■Rattle by picturing a valley between 
'wo and three miles long, of various 
t)readths at different points, but gener- 
ally not exceeding half a mile. On 
each side of the valley there is a wind- 



ing chain of low hills, running some- 
what parallel with each other. The 
declivity from each of these ranges of 
hills to the intervening valley is gentle 
but not uniform, the undulations of the 
ground being frequent and considera- 
ble. The English array was posted on 
the northern, and the French army oc- 
cupied the southern ridge. 

The artillery of each side thundere(3 
at the other from their respective heights 
throughout the day, and the charges oi 
horse and foot were made across the 
valley that has been described. The 
village of Mont St. Jean is situated a 
little behind the centre of the northern 
chain of hills, and the village of h^ 
Belle Alliance is close behind the centre 
of the southern ridge. The high road 
from Charleroi to Brussels runs through 
both these villages, and bisects, there- 
fore, both the English and the French 
positions. The line of this road was 
the line of Napoleon's intended advance 
on Brussels. 

Advantages of Position. 

There are some other local particu- 
lars connected with the situation of 
each army which it is necessary to bear 
in mind. The strength of the British 
position did not consist merely in the 
occupation of a ridge of high ground. 
A village and ravine, called Merk 
Braine, on the Duke of Wellington's 
extreme right, secured him from nis 
flank being turned on that side ; and on 
his extreme left, two little hamlets, 
called La Haye and Papillote, gave ^ 
similar though a slighter protection, 
It was, however, less necessary to pro- 
vide for this extremity of the position, 
as it was on this (the eastern) side that 
the Prussians were coming up. 



DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 315 

Behind the whole British position I important to see what posts there were 
was the great and extensive forest of 1 in front of the British line of hills of 




THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON— COMMANDER OF THE ALLIED ARMIES. 



Soignies. As no attempt was made by 
the French to turn either of the Eng- 
lish flanks, and the battle was a day of 
straightforward fighting; it is chiefly 



which advantage could be taken either 
to repel or facilitate an attack ; and it 
will be seen that there were two, and 
that each was of very great importance. 



316 



DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 



In front of the British right, that is 
to say, on the northern slope of the val- 
ley toward its western end, there stood 
an old-fashioned Flemish farm-house 
called Goumont or Hougoumont, with 
out-buildings and a garden, and with a 
copse of beech trees of about two acres 
in extent round it. This was strongly 
garrisoned by the allied troops ; and 
while it was in their possession, it was 
difficult for the enemy to press on and 
force the British right wing. 

Enemy Under Cover. 

On the other hand, if the enemy could 
occupy it, it would be difiicult for that 
wing to keep its ground on the heights, 
with a strong post held adversely in its 
immediate front, being one that would 
give much shelter to the enemy's marks- 
men, and great facilities for the sudden 
concentration of attacking columns. 
Almost immediately in front of the 
British centre, and not so far down the 
slope as Hougoumont, there was another 
farmhouse, of a smaller size, called La 
Haye Sainte, which was also held by 
the British troops, and the occupation 
of which was found to be of very seri- 
ous consequence. 

With respect to the French position, 
the principal feature to be noticed is 
the village of Planchenoit, which lay a 
little in the rear of their right (that is, 
on the eastern side), and which proved 
to be of great importance in aiding 
them to check the advance of the Prus- 
sians. 

As has been already mentioned, the 
Prussians, on the morning of the i8th, 
were at Wavre, about twelve miles to 
the east of the field of battle at Water- 
loo. The junction of Bulow's division 
had more than made up for the loss sus- 



tained at Ligny ; and leaving Thielman, 
with about 17,000 men, to hold his 
ground as he best could against the 
attack which Grouchy was about to 
make on Wavre, Bulow and Bluchcr 
moved with the rest of the Prussians 
upon Waterloo. It was calculated that 
they would be there by three o'clock ; 
but the extremely difficult nature of the 
ground which they had to traverse, ren- 
dered worse by the torrents of rain that 
had just fallen, delayed them long ou 
their twelve miles' march. 

The night of the 17th was wet and 
stormy; and when the dawn of the 
memorable 18th of June broke, the rain 
was still descending heavily. The 
French and British armies rose from 
their dreary bivouacs and began to form, 
each on the high ground which it oc- 
cupied. Toward nine the weather grew 
clearer, and each army was able to 
watch the position and arrangements of 
the other ou the opposite side of the 
valley. 

Line of Battle. 
The Duke of Wellington drew up his 
infantry in two lines, the second line 
being composed principally of Dutch 
and Belgian troops, whose fidelity was 
doubtful, and of those regiments of 
other nations which had suffered most 
severely at Quartre Bras on the \6th. 
This second line was j^osted or^ the 
northern declivity of the hills, so as to 
be sheltered from the French cannonade. 
The cavalry v/as stationed at intervals 
along the line in the rear, the largest 
force of horse being collected on the 
left of the centre, to the east of the 
Charleroi road. On the opposite heights 
the French army was drawn up in two 
general lines, with the entire force of 



DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 



817 



the Imperial Guards, cavalry as well as 
infantry, in the rear of the centre, as a 
reserve. 

Hnglish military critics highly eulo- 
gy* ' ed the admirable arrangement which 
^Napoleon made of his forces of each 
arm, so as to give him the most ample 
means of sustaining, by an immediate 
and sufficient support, any attack, from 
whatever point he might direct it, and 
of drawing promptly together a strong 
force, to resist any attack that might be 
made on himself in any part of the field. 
When his troops were all arrayed, he 
rode along the lines, receiving every- 
where the most enthusiastic cheers from 
his men, of whose entire devotion to 
him his assurance was now doubly sure. 
On the southern side of the valley the 
duke's army was also arrayed, and ready 
to meet the menaced attack. 

Armies Face to Pace. 

The two armies were now fairly in 
presence of each other, and their mutual 
observation was governed by the most 
intense interest and the most scrutiniz- 
ing anxiety. In a still greater degree 
did these feelings actuate their com- 
manders, while watching each other's 
preparatory movements, and minutely 
scanning the surface of the arena on 
which tactical skill, habitual prowess, 
physical strength, and moral courage 
were to decide, not alone their own, 
but, in all probability, the fate of 
Europe. 

Apart from national interests and 
considerations, and viewed solely in 
connection with the opposite characters 
of the two illustrious chiefs, the ap- 
proaching contest was contemplated 
with anxious solicitude by the whole 
military world. Need this create sur- 



prise when we reflect that the struggle 
was one for mastery between the far- 
famed conqueror of Italy and the vic- 
torious liberator of the Peninsul? ; be- 
tween the triumphant vanquisher of 
Eastern Europe, and the bold and suc- 
cessful invader of the south of France i 
Never was the issue of a single battle 
looked forward to as involving conse- 
quences of such vast importance — of 
such universal influence. 

The Struggle Begins. 

It was approaching noon before the 
action commenced. Napoleon, in his 
memoirs, gives as the reason for this 
delay, the miry state of the ground 
through the heavy rain of the preced- 
ing night and day, which rendered it 
impossible for cavalry or artillery to 
manceuver on it until a few hours of 
dry weather had given it its natural 
consistency. It has been supposed, also, 
that he trusted to the effect which the 
sight of the imposing array of his own 
forces was likely to produce on the part 
of the allied army. 

The Belgian regiments had been 
tampered with ; and Napoleon had well 
founded hopes of seeing them quit the 
Duke of Wellington in a body, and 
range themselves under his own eagles. 
The duke, however, who knew and did 
not trust them, had guarded against 
the risk of this by breaking up the 
corps of Belgians, and distributing them 
in separate regiments among troops on 
whom he could rely. 

At last, at about half past eleven 
o'clock. Napoleon began the battle by 
directing a powerful force from his left 
wing under his brother, Prince Jerome 
to attack Hougoumont. Column aftei 
column of the French now descended 



318 



DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 



from the west to the southern heights, 
and assailed that post with fiery valor, 
which was encountered with the most 
determined bravery. The French won 
the copse round the house, but a party 
of the British Guards held the house 
itself throughout the day. 

Terrific Cannonade. 

Amid shell and shot, and the blazing 
fragments of part of the buildings, this 
obstinate contest was continued. But 
still the English held Hougoumont, 
though the French occasionally moved 
forward in such numbers as enabled 
them to surround and mask this post 
with part of their troops from their left 
wing, while others pressed onward up 
the slope, and assailed the British right. 

The cannonade, which commenced 
at first between the British right and 
the French left, in consequence of the 
attack on Hougoumont, soon became 
general along both lines ; and about 
one o'clock Napoleon directed a grand 
attack to be made under Marshal Ney 
upon the centre and left wing of the 
allied army. For this purpose four 
columns of infantry, amounting to about 
18,000 men were collected, supported 
by a strong division of cavalry under 
the celebrated Kellerman, and seventy- 
four guns were brought forward ready 
to be posted on the ridge of a little 
undulation of the ground in the inter- 
val between the two main ranges of 
heights, so as to bring their fire to bear 
on the duke's line at a range of about 
seven hundred yards. 

By the combined assault of these 
formidable forces, led on by Ney, " the 
bravest of the brave," Napoleon hoped 
to force the left centre of the British 
position, to take La Haye Sainte, 



and then, pressing forward, to occupy 
also the farm of Mont St. Jean. He 
then could cut the mass of Wellington's 
troops ofi" from their line of retreat 
upon Brussels, and from their own left, 
and also completely sever them from 
any Prussian troops that might be ap- 
proaching. 

The columns destined for this great 
and decisive operation descended ma- 
jestically from the French range of 
hills, and gained the ridge of the inter- 
vening eminence, on which the batteries 
that supported them were now ranged. 
As the columns descended again from 
this eminence, the seventy-four guns 
opened over their heads with terrible 
effect upon the troops of the allies that 
were stationed on the heights to the 
left of Charleroi road. One of the 
French columns kept to the east, and 
attacked the extreme left of the allies ; 
the other three continued to move rap- 
idly forward upon the left centre of 
the allied position. 

Disgraceful Panic. 

The front line of the allies here was 
composed of Bylant's brigade of Dutch 
and Belgians. As the French columns 
moved up the southward slope of the 
height on which the Dutch and Belgi- 
ans stood, and the skirmishers in ad- 
vance began to open their fire, Bylant's 
entire brigade turned and fled in dis- 
graceful and disorderly panic ; but 
there were men more worthy of the 
name behind. 

The second line of the allies here 
consisted of two brigades of the Eng- 
lish infantry, which had suffered se- 
verely at Quatre Bras. But they were 
under Picton, and not even Ney himself 
surpassed in resolute bravery that stern 



DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 



319 



and fiery spirit. Picton brought his two 1 against the three victorious French 
brigades forward, side by side, in a \ columns, upward of four times that 




HEROIC CHARGE OP THE ENGLISH CAVALRY AT WATERLOO. 



thin two-deep line. Thus joined to- 
gether, they were not 3000 strong. 
With these Picton had to make head 



strength, and who, encouraged by th(^ 
easy rout of the Dutch and Belgians, 
now came confidently over the ridc-c. 



820 



DOWNFALI, OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 



The Britisli infantry stood firm ; and 
as the French halted and began to 
deploy into line, Picton seized the 
critical moment : a close and deadly 
volley was thrown in upon them, and 
then with a fierce hurrah the British 
dashed in with the bayonet. The 
French reeled back in confusion ; and 
as they staggard down the hill, a brig- 
ade of the English cavalry rode in on 
them, cutting them down by whole 
battalions, and taking ?ooo prisoners. 
The British cavalry gallopei forward 
and sabred the artillery-m ^/i of Ney's 
seventy-four advanced guns ■; and then 
cutting the traces and the throats of 
the horses, rendered these guns totally 
useless to the French throughout the 
remainder of the day. In the excite- 
ment of success, the English cavalry 
continued to press on, but were charged 
in their turn, and driven back with 
severe loss by Milhaud's cuirassiers. 

Failure of Great Attack. 

This great attack (in repelling which 
the brave Picton had fallen) had now 
completely failed ; and, at the same 
time, a powerful body of French cuir- 
assiers, who were advancing along the 
right of the Charleroi road, had been 
fairly beaten after a close hand-to-hand 
fight by the heavy cavalry of the Eng- 
lish household brigade. Hougoumont 
was still being assailed, and was suc- 
cessfully resisting. 

Troops were now beginning to ap- 
pear at the edge of the horizon on 
Napoleon's right, which he too well 
knew to be Prussian, though he en- 
deavored to persuade his followers that 
they were Grouchy's men coming to 
aid them. It was now about half-past 
three o'clock ; and though Wellington's 



army had suffered severely by the unre- 
mitting cannonade and in the late des- 
perate encounter, no part of the British 
position had been forced. Napoleon 
next determined to try what effect he 
could produce on the British centre and 
right by charges of his splendid cavalry, 
brought on in such force that the duke's 
cavalry could not check them. 

Stood Like a Wall. 

Fresh troops were at the same time 
sent to assail La Haye Sainte and 
Hougoumont, the possession of these 
posts being the emperor's unceasing 
object. Squadron after squadron of 
the French cuirassiers accordingly as- 
cended the slopes on the duke's right, 
and rode forward with dauntless cour- 
age against the batteries of the Britisli 
artillery in that part of the field. The 
artillerymen were driven from their 
guns, and the cuirassiers cheered loudly 
at their supposed triumph. But the 
duke had formed his infantry in squares, 
and the cuirassiers charged in vain 
against the impenetrable hedges of 
bayonets, while the fire from the inner 
ranks of the squares told with terrible 
effect on their squadrons. 

Time after time they rode forward 
with invariably the same result; and as 
they receded from each attack, the 
British artillerymen rushed forward 
from the centres of the squares, where 
they had taken refuge, and plied their 
guns on the retiring horsemen. Nearly 
the whole of Napoleon's magnificent 
body of heavy cavalry was destroyed 
in these fruitless attempts upon the 
British right. But in another part of 
the field fortune favored him for a time. 
Donzelot's infantry took La Haye 
Sainte between six and seven o'clock, 



DOWNFAI.L OF NAPOIvEON Ai WATKRI.OO. 



i21 



and the means were now given for or- 
ganizing another formidable attack on 
the centre of the allies. 

There was notime to be lost : Blucher 
and Bulow were beginning to press 
upon the French right ; as early as five 
o'clock, Napoleon had been obliged to 
detach Lobau's infantry and Domont's 
horse to check these new enemies. This 
was done for a time ; but, as large num- 
bers of the Prussians came on the field, 
they turned Lobau's left, and sent a 
strong force to seize the village of 
Planchenoit, which, it will be remem- 
bered, lay in the rear of the French 
right. Napoleon was now obliged to 
send his Young Guard to occupy that 
village, which was accordingly held by 
them with great gallantry against the 
reiterated assaults of the Prussian left 
under Bulow. 

Heroic Defense. 

But the force remaining under Napo- 
leon was now numerically inferior to 
that under the Duke of Wellington, 
which he had been assailing throughout 
the day, without gaining any other ad- 
vantage than the capture of La Haye 
Sainte. It is true that, owing to the 
gross misconduct of the greater part of 
the Dutch and Belgian troops, the duke 
was obliged to rely exclusively on his 
Bnglish and German soldiers, and the 
ranks of these had been fearfully 
thinned ; but the survivors stood their 
ground heroically, and still opposed a 
resolute front to every forward move- 
ment of their ene'mies. 

Napoleon had then the means of effect- 
ing a retreat. His Old Guard had yet 
taken no part in the action. Under 
cover of it, he might have withdrawn 
his shattered forces and retired upon 

21 



the French frontier. But this would 
only have given the English and Prus- 
sians the opportunity of completing 
their junction ; and he knew that other 
armies were fast coming up to aid them 
in a march upon Paris, if he should suc- 
ceed in avoiding an encounter with 
them, and retreating upon the capital. 
A victory at Waterloo was his only 
alternative from utter ruin, and he de- 
termined to employ his Guard in one 
bold stroke more to make that victory 
his own. 

Between seven and eight o'clock the 
infantry of the Old Guard was formed 
into two columns, on the declivity near 
La Belle Alliance. Ney was placed at 
their head. Napoleon himself rode for- 
ward to a spot by which his veterans 
were to pass ; and as they approached he 
raised his arm, and pointed to the posi- 
tion of the allies, as if to tell them, that 
their path lay there. They answered 
with loud cries of " Vive I'Emperor ! " 
and descended the hill from their own 
side into that "valley of the shadow of 
death," while their batteries thundered 
with redoubled vigor over their heads 
upon the British line. 

Charge on British Centre. 
The line of march of the columns of 
the Guard was directed between Hou- 
goumont and La Haye Sainte, against 
the British right centre; and at the 
same time, Donzelot and the French, 
who had possession of La Haye Sainte, 
commenced a fierce attack upon the 
British centre, a little more to its left. 
This part of the battle has drawn less 
attention than the celebrated attack of 
the Old Guard ; but it formed the most 
perilous crisis for the allied army ; and 
if the Young Guard had been there to 



322 



DOWNFALI. OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 



support Donzelot, instead of being en- 
gaged with the Prussians at Planche- 
noit, the consequences to the allies in 
that part of the field must have been 
most serious. 

The French tirailleurs, who were 
posted in clouds in La Haye Sainte, 
and the sheltered spots near it, com- 
pletely disabled the artillerymen of the 
English batteries near them ; and, tak- 
ing advantage of the crippled state of 
the English guns, the French brought 
some field-pieces up to La Haye Sainte, 
and commenced firing grape from them 
on the infantry of the allies, at a dis- 
tance of not more than a hundred paces. 
The allied infantry here consisted of 
some German brigades, who were formed 
in squares, as it was believed that Don- 
zelot had cavalry ready behind La Haye 
Sainte to charge them with, if they left 
that order of formation. In this state 
the Germans remained for some time 
with heroic fortitude, though the grape- 
shot was tearing gaps in their ranks, 
and the side of one square was literally 
blown away by one tremendous volley 
which the French gunners poured into it. 

Duke at the Front. 
The Prince of Orange in vain endea- 
vored to lead some Nassau troops to their 
aid. The Nassauers would not or could 
not face the French ; and some battal- 
ions of Brunswickers, whom the Duke 
of Wellington had ordered up as a re- 
enforcement, at first fell back, until the 
Duke in person rallied them and led 
them on. The Duke then galloped off 
to the right to head his men who were 
exposed to the attack of the Imperial 
Guard. He had saved one part of his 
centre from being routed; but the 
French had gained ground here, and 



the pressure on the allied line was severe, 
until it was relieved by the decisive suc- 
cess which the British in the right cen- 
tre achieved over the columns of the 
Guard. 

The British troops on the crest of 
that part of the position, which the first 
column of Napoleon's Guards assailed, 
were Maitland's brigade of British 
Guards, having Adam's brigade on 
their right. Maitland's men were ly- 
ing down, in order to avoid, as far as 
possible, the destructive effect of the 
French artillery, which kept up an un- 
remitting fire from the opposite heights, 
until the first column of the Imperial 
Guard had advanced so far up the slope 
toward the British position that any 
further firing of the French artillery- 
men would endanger their own com- 
rades. 

Ney's Superb Bravery. 

Meanwhile, the British guns were not 
idle ; but shot and shell plowed fast 
through the ranks of the stately array 
of veterans that still moved imposingly 
on. Several of the French superior 
oflScers were at its head. Ney's horse 
was shot under him, but he still led the 
way on foot, sword in hand. The front 
of the massy column now was on the 
ridge of the hill. To their surprise, 
they saw no troops before them. All 
they could discern through the smoke 
was a small band of mounted officers. 
One of them was the duke himself. 
The French advanced to about fifty 
yards from where the British Guards 
were lying down, when the voice of 
one of the band of British officers was 
heard calling, as if to the ground before 
him, " Up, Guards, and at them 1 " 

It was the Duke who gave the order ; 



DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 



323 



and at the words, as if by magic, up 
started before them, a line of British 
Guards four deep, and in the most com- 
pact and perfect order. They poured 
an instantaneous volley upon the head 
of the French column, by which no less 
than three hundred of those chosen 
* veterans are said to have fallen. The 
French officers rushed forward, and, 
conspicuous in front of their men, at- 
tempted to deploy them into a more 
extended line, so as to enable them to 
reply with effect to the British fire. 

The French Routed. 

But Maitland's brigade kept shower- 
ing in volley after volley with deadly 
rapidity. The decimated column grew 
disordered in its vain efforts to expand 
itself into a more efficient formation. 
The right word was given at the right 
moment to the British for the bayonet 
charge, and the brigade sprung forward 
with a loud cheer against their dis- 
mayed antagonists. In an instant the 
compact mass of the French spread out 
into a rabble, and they fled back down 
the hill pursued by Maitland's men, 
who, however, returned to their position 
in time to take part in the repulse of the 
second column of the Imperial Guard. 

This column also advanced with great 
spirit and firmness under the cannonade 
which was opened upon it, and, passing 
by the eastern wall of Hougoumont, 
diverged slightly to the right as it 
moved up the slope toward the British 
position, so as to approach the same 
spot where the first column had sur- 
mounted the height and been defeated. 
This enabled the British regiments of 
Adam's brigade to form a line parallel 
to the left flank of the French column, 
so that while the front of this column 



of French Guards had to encounter the 
cannonade of the British batteries, and 
the musketry of Maitland's Guards, its 
left flank was assailed with a destructive 
fire by a four-deep body of British in- 
fantry, extending all along it. 

Veterans Hurled Back. 

In such a position, all the bravery 
and skill of the French veterans were 
in vain. The second column, like its 
predecessor, broke and fled, taking at 
first a lateral direction along the front 
of the British line toward the river of 
I/a Haye Sainte, and so becoming 
blended with the divisions of French 
infantry, which, under Donzelot, had 
been pressing the allies so severely in 
that quarter. The sight of the Old 
Guard broken and in fiight checked 
the ardor which Donzelot's troops had 
hitherto displayed. They, too, began 
to waver. Adam's victorious brigade 
was pressing after the flying Guard, and 
now cleared away the assailants of the 
allied centre. 

But the battle was not yet won. Na- 
poleon had still some battalions in re- 
serve near lya Belle Alliance. He was 
rapidly rallying the remains of the first 
column of his Guards, and he had col- 
lected into one body the remnants of 
the various corps of cavalry, which had 
suffered so severely in the earlier part 
of the day. The duke instantly formed 
the bold resolution of now himself be- 
coming the assailant, and leading his 
successful though enfeebled army for- 
ward, while the disheartening effect of 
the repulse of the Imperial Guard on 
the French army was still strong, and 
before Napoleon and Ney could rally 
the beaten veterans themselves for 
another and fiercer charge. 




o 

o 

o 
w 

w 

O 
« 

o 



324 



DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 



325 



As the close approach of the Prus- 
sians now completely protected the 
duke's left, he had drawn some reserves 
of horse from that quarter, and had a 
brigade of Hussars under Vivian fresh 
and ready at hand. Without a moment's 
hesitation, he launched these against 
the cavalry near La Belle Alliance. 
The charge was as successful as it was 
daring ; and as there was now no hostile 
cavalry to check the British infantry in 
a forward movement, the duke gave the 
long-wished-for command for a general 
advance of the army along the whole 
line upon the foe. 

"Nine Deadly Hours." 

It was now past eight o'clock, and 
for nine deadly hours had the British 
and German regiments stood unflinch- 
ing under the fire of artillery, the 
charge of cavalry, and every variety of 
assault that the compact columns or 
the scattered skermishers of the enemy's 
infantry could inflict. As they joyously 
sprang forward against the discomfited 
masses of the French, the setting sun 
broke through the clouds which had 
obscured the sky during the greater 
part of the day, and glittered on the 
bayonets of the allies while they in 
turn poured down into the valley and 
toward the heights that were held by 
the foe. 

Almost the whole of the French host 
was now in irretrievable confusion. 
The Prussian army was coming more 
and more rapidly forward on their right, 
and the Young Guard, which had held 
Planchenoit so bravely, was at last 
compelled to give way. Some regi- 
ments of the Old Guard in vain endea- 
vored to form, in squares. They were 
swept away to the rear; and then Na- 



poleon himself fled from the last of his 
many fields, to become in a few weeks 
a captive and an exile. The battle was 
lost by France past all recovery. The 
victorious armies of England and Prus- 
sia, meeting on the scene of their 
triumph, continued to press forward 
and overwhelm every attempt that was 
made to stem the tide of ruin. 

The British army, exhausted by its 
toils and suffering during that dreadful 
day, did not urge the pursuit beyond 
the heights which the enemy had oc- 
cupied. But the Prussians drove the 
fugitives before them throughout the 
night. And of the magnificent host 
which had that morning cheered theii 
emperor in confident expectation of 
victory, very few were ever assembled 
again in arms. Their loss, both in the 
field and in the pursuit, was immense ; 
and the greater number of those who 
escaped, dispersed as soon as they crossed 
the frontier. 

The army under the Duke of Wel- 
lington lost heavily in killed and 
wounded on this terrible day of battle. 
The loss of the Prussian army was even 
greater. At a fearful price was the de- 
liverance of Europe purchased. 

Battles Compared. 

Hon. Theodore Roosevelt, Colonel of 
the Rough Riders in our war with 
Spain, made some interesting compari- 
sons between the battles of Gettysburg 
and Waterloo, as follows : 

"As the battles of Waterloo and 
Gettysburg, from their size, bloodiness, 
and decisive importance, have so often 
provoked comparison, it may be of 
interest to readers to compare the force 
and loss of the combatants in each. I 
take the figures for Waterloo from the 



326 



DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 



official reports as given by Dorsey 
Gardner in his ' Quatre Bras, Ligny 
and Waterloo,' and the figures for Get- 
tysburg from • Battles and L^eaders of 
the Civil War,' and from Captain Wil- 
liam F. Fox's 'Regimental lyosses in 
the American Civil War.' 

Infantry and Artillery. 

" Unlike Waterloo Gettysburg was al- 
nost purely a fight of infantry and artil- 
lery ; the cavalry, which did good work 
luring the campaign, played no part in 
ihe battle itself, the bulk of the horse of 
ihe two contending armies being at the 
iime engaged in a subsidiary but en- 
tirely distinct fight of their own. The 
troops thus engaged should not be in- 
cluded in the actual fighting forces 
employed at Gettysburg itself, any more 
than Grouchy' s French and the Prus- 
sians agaiast whom they were pitted at 
Wavre can be included in the armies 
actually engaged at Waterloo. The 
exclusion will be made in both cases 
and the comparison thereby rendered 
more easy. 

" Even making these exclusions it is 
impossible wholly to reconcile the vari- 
ous authorities, but the following fig- 
ures must be nearly accurate. At Get- 
tysburg there were present in action 
80,000 to 85,000 Union troops, and 
of the Confederate some 65,000. At 
Waterloo there were 120,000 soldiers of 
the Allies under Wellington and Blu- 
cher, and some 72,000 French under 
Napoleon ; or, there were about 150,000 
combatants at Gettysburg and about 
190,000 at Waterloo. 

"In each case the weaker army made 
the attack and was defeated. Lee did 
not have to face such heavy odds as 
N-ipoleon, but whereas Napoleon's de- 



feat was one in which he lost all his 
guns and saw his soldiers become a dis- 
organized rabble, Lee drew off his 
army in good order, his cannon uncap- 
tured, and the morale of his formidable 
soldiers unshaken. 

"The defeated Confederates lost in 
killed and wounded 15,530, and in 
captures 7,467, some of whom were 
likewise wounded, or 23,000 in all ; the 
defeated French lost from 25,000 to 
30,000 — probably nearer the latter num- 
ber. The Confederates thus lost in 
killed and wounded at least 25 per cent, 
of their force, and yet they preserved 
their artillery and their organization, 
while the French suffered an even 
heavier proportional loss and were 
turned into a fleeing mob. 

Heavy Federal Losses. 

"At Gettysburg the Northerns lost 
17,555 killed and wounded and 5435 
missing ; in other words, they suffered 
an actually greater loss than the much 
larger army of Wellington and Blucher; 
relatively it was half as great again, 
being something like 22 per cent, in 
killed and wounded alone. This gives 
some idea of the comparative obstinacy 
of the fighting. 

" But in each case the brunt of the 
battle fell unequally on different or- 
ganizations. At Waterloo the English 
did the heaviest fighting and suff'ered 
the heaviest loss, and though at Gettys- 
burg no troops behaved badly, as did 
the Dutch-Belgians, yet one or two of 
the regiments composed of foreigners 
certainly failed to distinguish them- 
selves. Meade had seven infantry corps, 
one of which was largely held in re- 
serve. The six that did the actual fight- 
ing may be grouped in pairs. The se- 



DOWNFALI. OF NAPOLEON AT WATERLOO. 



327 



cond and third numbered nominally 
23,610 (probably there were in reality 
several hundred less than this), and lost 
in killed and wounded 7586, or 32 per 
cent., and 974 missing, so that these 
two corps, whose aggregate force was 
smaller than that of Wellington's Bri- 
tish regiments at Waterloo, neverthe- 
less suffered a considerably heavier 
loss, and therefore must have done 
bloodier and, on the whole, more obsti- 
nate fighting. 

"The First and Eleventh Corps, who 
were very roughly handled the first 
day, make a much worse showing in 
the missing column, but their death 
rolls are evidence of how bravely they 
fought. They had in all 18,600 men, 
of whom 6092, or 32 per cent, were 
killed and wounded and 3733 missing. 
The Fifth and Twelfth Corps, in the 
aggregate of 20, 147 men, lost 2990, or 
15 per cent, killed and wounded and 
278 missing. 

" Thus of the six Union corps which 
did the fighting at Gettysburg four suf- 
fered a relatively much heavier loss in 
killed and wounded than Wellington's 
British at Waterloo, and the other two 
SI relatively much heavier loss than 
Blucher's Prussians. 



" In making any comparison between 
the two battles it must, of course, be re- 
membered that one occupied but a sin- 
gle day and the other very nearly three ; 
and it is hard to compare the severity 
of the strain of a long and very bloody, 
with that caused by a short, and only 
less bloodless battle. Gettysburg con- 
sisted of a series of more or less com- 
paratively isolated conflicts ; but owing 
to the loose way in which the armies 
marched into action many of the troops 
that did the heaviest of the fightinsf 
were engaged for but a portion of the 
time. The Second and Third Corps 
were probably not heavily engaged for 
a very much longer period than the 
British regiments at Waterloo. 

*'Both were soldiers' rather than 
generals' battles. Both were waged 
with extraordinary courage and obsti- 
nacy and at a fearful cost of life. Wa- 
terloo was settled by a single desperate 
and exhausting struggle ; Gettysburg 
took longer, was less decisive, and was 
relatively much more bloody. Accord- 
ing to Wellington the chief feature of 
Waterloo was the * hard pounding,' 
and at Gettysburg the pounding — or, 
as Grant called it, the ' hammering ' 
— was even harder." 



CHAPTER XXII. 



Decisive Battles of Austerlitz and Jena. 




N the 2 1st of November, 1805, a 
striking and warlike cavalcade 
was traversing at a slow pace a 
wide and elevated plateau in 
Moravia. In front, on a grey horse, rode 
a short, sallow-faced man with dark 
hair and a quick, eager glance, whose 
notice nothing seemed to escape. His 
dress was covered by a grey overcoat, 
which met a pair of long riding-boots, 
and on his head was a low, weather- 
stained cocked hat. 

He was followed by a crowd of officers, 
evidently of high rank, for their uni- 
forms, saddle-cloths, and plumed hats 
were heavily laced, and they had the 
bold, dignified bearing of leaders of 
men. In front and in the flanks of the 
party were scattered watchful vedettes, 
and behind followed a strong squadron 
of picked cavalry in dark green dol- 
mans with furred pelisses slung over 
their shoulders, and huge fur caps sur- 
mounted by tall red plumes. 

The leading horseman rode in silence 
over the plateau, first to one point then 
to another, examining with anxious 
care every feature of the ground. He 
marked carefully the little village from 
which the expanse took its name, and 
the steep declivity which sloped to a 
muddy stream below. No one addressed 
him, for he was a man whose train of 
thought was not to be lightly inter- 
rupted. 

Suddenly, at length, he drew rein, 

and, turning to the body of ofiicers, 

said : "Gentlemen, examine this ground 

carefully. It will be a field of battle, 

328 



upon which you will all have a part to 
act." The speaker was Napoleon. 
His hearers were his generals and staff. 
He had been reconnoitring, surrounded 
and guarded by his devoted Chasseurs 
of the Guard, the plateau of Pratzen, 
the main part of the arena where was 
to be waged in a few days the mighty 
conflict of Austerlitz. 

Napoleon's headquarters were then 
at Brunn. The French host, then for 
the first time called the ' ' Grand Army, ' ' 
had, at the command of its great chief, 
in the beginning of September broken 
up the camps long occupied on the 
coasts of France in preparation for a 
contemplated invasion of England, and 
had directed its march to the Rhine. 
It was formed in seven corps under 
Bernadotte, Marmont, Davoust, Soult, 
Lannes, Ney, and Augereau, with its 
cavalry under Prince Murat, and the 
Imperial Guard as a reserve. 

The Rhine was crossed at different 
points, and the tide of invasion swept 
upon the valley of the Danube. From 
the beginning the movements had been 
made with a swiftness unprecedented 
in war. Guns and cavalry had been 
moved in ceaseless and unhalting stream 
along every road. Infantry had pressed 
forward by forced marches, and had 
been aided in its onward way by wheeled 
transports at every available oppor- 
tunity. 

The Emperor had resolved to strike 
a blow by land against his foes which 
should counterbalance the several checks 
which the indomitable navy of Englan«3 



BATTLES OF AUSTERLITZ AND JENA. 



32& 



had inflicted on his fleets at sea. Austria 
and Russia were in arms against France, 
and he was straining every nerve to en- 
counter and shatter their separate forces 
before they would unite in overwhelm- 
ing power. The campaign had opened 
for him with a series of brilliant suc- 
cesses. The veterans of the revolution- 
ary wars, of Italy and of Egypt, di- 
rected by his mighty genius, had proved 
themselves irresistible. 

The Austrians had been the first to 
meet the shock, and had been defeated 
at every point— Gunzberg, Haslach, 
Albeck, Elchingen, Memmingen— and 
the first phase of the struggle had closed 
with the capitulation at Ulm of Gen- 
eral Mack with 30,000 men. 

Brilliant Successes. 

But there had been no stay in the 
rush of the victorious French. The 
first defeats of the Austrian army had 
been rapidly followed up. The corps 
which had escaped from the disaster at 
Ulm were pursued and, one after an- 
other, annihilated. The Tyrol was 
overrun, and its strong positions occu- 
pied by Marshal Ney. From Italy 
came the news of Massena's successes 
against the celebrated Archduke 
Charles, and at Dirnstein Marshal Mor- 
tier had defeated the first Russian army 
under Kutusow. 

The Imperial headquarters had been 
established at Schonbrunn, the home 
of the Emperor of Austria. Vienna 
had been occupied and the bridge 
across the Danube secured by Lannes 
and Murat. Kutusow, after his defeat 
at Dirnstein, had been driven back 
through Hollabrunn on Brunn by the 
same marshals at the head of the French 
advanced guard, and had now joined 



the second Russian army, with which 
was its Emperor Alexander in person, 
and an Austrian force under Prince 
lyichtenstein, accompanied by the Em- 
peror of Austria. 

The main body of the " Grand Ar- 
my" had, under Napoleon, followed 
its advanced guard into the heart of 
Moravia. Its headquarters and imme- 
diate base were now at Brunn, but its 
position was sufficiently critical, at the 
extremity of a long line of operations, 
numbering less than 70,000 disposable 
men, while the Russo-Austrian army 
in front amounted to 92,000. So rapid 
had been the movements since the camp 
at Boulogne was left, that the common 
saying passed in the ranks that " Our 
Emperor does not make use of our arms 
in this war so much as of our legs ;" 
and the grave result of this constant 
swiftness had been that many soldiers 
had fallen to the rear from indisposition 
or fatigue, and even the nominal 
strength of corps was thus for the time 
seriously diminished. It is recorded 
that in the Chasseurs a-Cheval of the 
Guard alone there was a deficiency of 
more than four hundred men from this 
cause. But all these laggards were 
doing their best to rejoin the army be- 
fore the great battle took place which 
all knew to be inevitable, and in which 
all were eager to bear their part. 

The Army Resting. 
Napoleon had himself arrived at 
Brunn on the 20th of November, and 
during the following days till the 27th 
he allowed his army a measure of re- 
pose to enable it to recover its strength 
after its long toils— to repair its arms, 
its boots and worn material, and to 
rally every man under its eagles. His 



330 



BATTLES OF AUSTBRI.ITZ AND JENA. 



advanced guard had been pushed for- 
ward under Murat towards Wischau on 
the Olmutz road, Soult's corps on his 
right had pressed Kutusow's retreat to- 
wards Austerlitz, and the remainder 
were disposed in various positions to 
watch Hungary and Bohemia and to 
maintain his hold upon Vienna. 

Gruard Driven Back. 

On the 27th the French advanced 
guard was attacked and driven back by 
the Russians at Wischau, and certain 
information arrived that this had been 
done by a portion of the main Russian 
army und^r the Emperor Alexander. 
It had been thought possible by Napo- 
leon that peaceful negotiations might 
be opened, but this confident advance 
of his enemies seemed to show that they 
had by no means lost heart, and when 
on the 28th he had a personal interview 
with Prince Dolgorouki, the favorite 
of Alexander, he found the Russian 
proposals so insulting and presumptu- 
ous that he broke off abruptly any fur- 
ther communication. 

We have seen Napoleon reconnoiter- 
ing on the 21st of November, and we 
have marked the marvellous coup d^ csil 
and prescience with which he foresaw 
the exact spot where the great battle, 
then looming before him, must take 
place. Every succeeding day saw the 
reconnoissance renewed, and never was 
a battle-field more thoroughly exam- 
ined, never was forecast by a general of 
the actual turn of events to be expected 
more completely justified by fulfilment. 

It had become certain that the united 
army of two mighty empires was close 
at hand. From the tone of Dolgorouki's 
communication it was evident that both 
the Russian and Austrian monarchs had 



resolved to trust their fortunes to the 
ordeal of battle, and that they, with 
their generals and soldiery, were eager 
to retrieve their previous misfortunes, 
and full of confidence that they would 
do so. That confidence had been in- 
creased by the repulse of the French 
advanced guard at Wischau ; and they 
now longed to complete their work by 
pouring their superior numbers on the 
comparatively weak French main body. 
With this knowledge before him, 
Napoleon proceeded to carry out the 
plan of action which he had carefully 
matured. To the astonishment of many 
veterans in his army, a general retreat 
of his advanced troops was ordered. 
Murat fell back from Posoritz and Soult 
from near Austerlitz. But this retro- 
grade movement was short, and they 
were halted on the ground chosen by 
Napoleon for his battle-line. The out- 
lying corps of Bernadotte and Davoust 
was summoned to complete his array. 
Munitions, food, ambulances were hur- 
ried to their appointed posts, and it was 
announced that the battle would be 
fought on the ist or 2d of December. 

Daring Strategy. 
The line of a muddy stream, called 
the Goldbach, marked the front of the 
French army. This stream takes its 
source across the Olmutz road, and 
flowing through a dell, of which the 
sides are steep, discharges itself into 
the Menitz Lake. At the top of its 
high left bank stretches the wide Prat- 
zen plateau, and it appeared to Napo- 
leon's staff that he had made an error 
in relinquishing such a vantage ground 
to his enemy ; but he told them that 
he had done so of set purpose, saying, 
"If I remained master of this fine 



BA'TtLES OF AUSTERLITZ AND JENA. 



331 



plateau, I could here check the Rus- 
sians, but then I should only have an 
ordinary victory ; whereas by giving it 
to them and refusing my right, if they 
dare to descend from these heights in 
order to outflank me, I secure that they 
shall be lost beyond redemption," 

I^et us examine the positions occupied 
by the French and the Austro-Russian 
armies at the close of November, and 
we shall the better understand the 
general strategy of the two combatant 
forces and the tactics which each made 
use of when they came into collision. 
The Emperor Napoleon rested his left, 
under Ivannes and Murat, on a rugged 
eminence, which those of his soldiers 
who had served in Egypt called the 
" Santon," because its crest was crowned 
by a little chapel, of which the roof 
had a fancied resemblance to a minaret. 

An Impregnable Fortress. 

This eminence he had strengthened 
with field works, armed and provisioned 
like a fortress. He had, by repeated 
visits, satisfied himself that his orders 
were properly carried out, and he had 
committed its defence to special defend- 
ers under the command of General 
Claparede, impressing upon them that 
they must be prepared to fire their last 
cartridge at their post and, if necessary, 
there to die to the last man. 

His centre was on the right bank of 
the Goldbach. There were the corps 
of Soultand Bernadotte, the Grenadiers 
of Duroc and Oudinot, and the Imperial 
Guard with forty guns. Their double 
lines were concealed by the windings 
of the stream, by scattered clumps of 
wood, and by the features of the ground. 

His right was entrusted to Davoust's 
corps, summoned in haste to the battle- 



field, and of which only a division of 
infantry and one of Dragoons had been 
able to come into line. They were 
posted at Menitz, and had the defiles 
passing the Menitz I^ake and the two 
other lakes of Telnitz and Satschau. 
Napoleon's line of battle was thus an 
oblique one, with its right thrown back. 
It had the appearance of being only 
defensive, if not actually timid, its cen- 
tre not more than sufiiciently occupied, 
its right extremely weak, and only its 
left formidable and guaranteed against 
any but the most powerful attack. 

Setting a Trap. 

But the great strategist had weighed 
well his methods. He trusted that the 
foe would be tempted to commit them- 
selves to an attack on his right, essay- 
ing to cut his communications and line 
of retreat on Vienna. If they could be 
led into this trap, the difficulty of 
movement in the ground cut up by 
lake, stream, and marsh would give to 
Davoust the power to hold them in 
check until circumstances allowed of 
aid being given to him. Meantime, 
with his left impregnable and his centre 
ready to deal a crushing blow, he ex- 
pected to be able to operate against 
the Russo- Austrian flank and rear with 
all the advantage due to unlooked-for 
strength. 

The right of the Russo-Austrians, 
commanded by the Princes Bagration 
and Ivichtenstein, rested on a wooded 
hill near Posoritz across the Olmutz 
road. Their centre, under Kollowrath, 
occupied the village of Pratzen and the 
large surrounding plateau ; while their 
left, under Doctorof and Kienmyer, 
stretched towards the Satchau Lake 
and the adjoining marshes. 



832 



BATTLES OF AUSTERLITZ AND JENA. 



The village of Austerlitz was some 
distance in the rear of the Russo-Aus- 
trian position, and had no immediate 
connection with the movements of the 
troops employed on either side, but the 
Emperors of Russia and Austria slept 
in it on the night before the battle, and 
Napoleon afterwards accentuated the 
greatness of his victory by naming it 
after the place from which he had 
chased them. 

An Unequal Contest. 

The two great armies now in presence 
of each other were markedly unequal 
in strength — 92,000 men were opposed 
to 70,000, and the advantage of 22,000 
was to the allies. But this inequality 
was to a great extent compensated by 
the tactical dispositions of the leader 
of the weaker force. Of the two an- 
tagonist lines, one was wholly exposed 
to view, the other to a great extent 
concealed — first advantage to the latter. 
They formed, as it were, two parallel 
arcs of a circle, but that of the French 
was the more compact and uninter- 
rupted — second advantage ; and this 
last was soon to be increased by the 
imprudent Russian manoeuvres. The 
two armies, barely at a distance of two 
cannon-shot from each other, had by 
mutual tacit consent formed their biv- 
ouacs, piled arms, fed and reposed 
peaceably around their fires, the one 
covered by a thick cloud of Cossacks, 
the other by a sparse line of vedettes. 

Napoleon quitted Brunn early in the 
morning of the ist of December, and 
employed the whole of that day in ex- 
amining the positions which the differ- 
ent portions of his army occupied. His 
headquarters were established in the 
rear of the centre of his line at a hio-h 



point, from which could be seen the 
bivouacs of both French and allies, as 
well as the ground on which the mor- 
row's issue would be fought out. The 
cold was intense, but there was no snow. 
The only shelter that could be found 
for the ruler of France was a dilapidated 
hut, in which were placed the Empe- 
ror's table and maps. 

The Grenadiers had made up a huge 
fire hard by, and his travelling carriage 
was drawn up, in which he could take 
such sleep as his anxieties would per- 
mit. The divisions of Duroc and Oud- 
inot bivouacked between him and the 
enemy, while the Guard lay round him 
and towards the rear. 

A Huge Blunder. 

In the late afternoon of the same day 
Napoleon was watching the allied posi- 
tion through his telescope. On the 
Pratzen plateau could be seen a general 
flank movement of Russian columns, in 
the rear of their first line, from their 
centre to their left and towards the 
front of the French position at Telnitz. 
It was evidently supposed by the enemy 
that the French intended to act only on 
the defensive, that nothing was to be 
feared from them in front, and that the 
allies had only to throw their masses 
on their right, cut off their retreat upon 
Vienna, and thus inflict upon them a 
certain and disastrous defeat. r- 

It was forgotten by the Russo-Aus- 
trians that in thus moving their princi- 
pal forces to the left, the centre of their 
position was weakened, and on the 
right their own line of operations and 
retreat was left entirely unprotected. 
When Napoleon detected what was be- 
ing done, trembling with satisfaction 
and clapping his hands, he said : "What 



BATTLES OF AUSTERIvITZ AND JENA. 



333 



a manoeuvre to be ashamed of ! They 
are running into the trap ! They are 
giving themselves up ! Before to-mor- 
row evening that army will be in my 
hands!" In order still more to add to 
the confidence of his enemy and to en- 
courage them in the prosecution of their 
mistaken plan, he ordered Murat to 
sally forth from his own position with 
some cavalry, to manoeuvre as if show- 
ing uneasiness and hesitation, and then 
to retire with an air of alarm. 

Promises Victory. 

This order given, he returned im- 
mediately to his bivouac, dictated and 
issued his famous proclamation in 
which he assured his army that the 
Austro-Russians were exposing their 
flank and were offering certain glory to 
the soldiers of France as a reward for 
their valor in the coming struggle : 
he said that he himself would direct 
their battalions, but that he would not 
expose himself to danger unless success 
was doubtful, and he promised that 
after their victor}^ they should have 
comfortable cantonments and peace. 

The evening of the ist of December 
closed in. The allied movement to- 
wards their left was still continuing, 
and Napoleon, after renewing his or- 
ders, again visiting his parks and ambu- 
lances and satisfying himself by his 
own observation that all was in order, 
threw himself on a bundle of straw and 
slept. About eleven o'clock he was 
awakened and told that a sharp attack 
had been made on one of the villages 
occupied by his right, but that it had 
been repulsed. This further confirmed 
his forecast of the allied movements, 
but, wishing to make a last reconnais- 
sance of his enemy's position, he again 



mounted, and, followed by Junot, Duroc, 
Berthier, and some others of his stajQf, 
he ventured between the two armies. 

As he closely skirted the enemy's line 
of outposts, in spite of several warnings 
that he was incurring great risk, he, in 
the darkness, rode into a picket of 
Cossacks. These sprang to arms and 
attacked him so suddenly that he would 
certainly have been killed or taken pris- 
oner if it had not been for the devoted 
courage of his escort, which engaged 
the Cossacks while he turned his horse 
and galloped back to the French lines. 
His escape was so narrow and precipi- 
tate that he had to pass without choos- 
ing his way the marshy Goldbach 
stream. 

"A Cry was Raised." 

His own horse and those of several of 
his attendants — amongst others Ywan, 
his surgeon, who never left his person 
— were for a time floundering helpless 
in the deep mud, and the Emperor was 
obliged to make his way on foot to his 
headquarters past the fires round which 
his soldiers were lying. In the obscur- 
ity he stumbled over a fallen tree-trunk; 
and it occurred to a grenadier who saw 
him, to twist and use some straw as a 
torch, holding it over his head to light 
the path of his sovereign. 

In the middle of the anxious night, 
full of disquietude and anticipation, the 
eve of the anniversary of the Emperor's 
coronation, the face of Napoleon, lighted 
up and suddenly displayed by this flame, 
appeared almost as a vision to the 
soldiers of the nearest bivouacs. A cry 
was raised, "It is the anniversary of 
the coronation ! Vive I'Empereur!" — 
an outburst of loyal ardor which Na- 
poleon in vain attempted to check with 



334 



BATTLES OF AUSTBRLITZ AND JENA. 



the words, "Silence till to-morrow. 
Now you have only to sharpen your 
bayonets." 

But the same thought, the same cry, 
was taken up and flew with lightning 
quickness from bivouac to bivouac. All 
made torches of whatever material was 
at hand. Some pulled down the field- 
shelters for the purpose — some used the 
straw that had been collected to form 
their beds ; and in an instant, as if by 
enchantment, thousands of lights flared 
upwards along the whole French line, 
and by thousands of voices the cry was 
repeated, "Vive I'Empereur !" Thus 
was improvised, within sight of the as- 
tonished enemy, the most striking of 
illuminations, the most memorable of 
demonstrations, by which the admira- 
tion and devotion of a whole army have 
ever been shown to its general. 

His Happiest Night. 

It is said that the Russians believed 
the French to be burning their shelt- 
ers as a preliminary to retreat, and 
that their confidence was thereby in- 
creased. As to Napoleon, though at 
first annoyed at the outburst, he was 
soon gratified and deeply touched by 
the heart-felt enthusiasm displayed, and 
said that "This night is the happiest of 
my life." For some time he continued 
to move from bivouac to bivouac, tell- 
ing his soldiers how much he appreci- 
ated their affection, and saying those 
kindly and encouraging words which 
no one better than he knew how to use. 

The morning began to break on the 
2d of December. As he buckled on his 
sword, Napoleon said to the staff" gath- 
ered round — " Now, gentlemen, let us 
commence a great day." He mounted, 
and from different points were seen ar- 



riving to receive his last orders the 
renowned chiefs of his various corpS' 
d'' armee^ each followed by a single aide- 
de-camp. There were Marshal Prince 
Murat, Marshal Lannes, Marshal Soult, 
Marshal Bernadotte, and Marshal Da- 
voust. What a formidable circle of 
men, each of whom had already gath- 
ered glory on many different fields ! 

Matchless Murat. 

Murat, distinctively the cavalry gen- 
eral of France, the intrepid paladin who 
had led his charging squadrons on all 
the battle-fields of Italy and Egypt ; 
Eannes, whose prowess at Montebello 
had made victory certain ; Soult, the 
veteran of the long years of war on the 
Rhine and in Germany, the hero of 
Altenkirchen, and Massena's most dis- 
tinguished lieutenant at the battle of 
Zurich; Bernadotte, not more renowned 
as a general in the field than as the 
minister of war who prepared the con- 
quest of Holland ; Davoust, the stern 
disciplinarian and leader, unequalled 
for cool gallantry and determination — 
all were gathered at this supreme mo 
ment round one of the greatest masters 
of war in ancient or modern times, to 
receive his inspiration and to part like 
thunder-clouds bearing the storm which 
was to shatter the united armies of two 
Empires. 

The Emperor's general plan of action 
was already partly known, but he now 
repeated it to his marshals in detail. 
He was more than ever certain, from 
the last reports which he had received, 
that the enemy was continuing the flank 
movement, and would hurl the heaviest 
attacks on the French right near Tel- 
nitz. 

To Davoust was entrusted the duty 



BATTLES OF AUSTERI.ITZ AND JENA. 



335 



of holding the extreme right and check- 
ing, in the defiles formed by the lakes, 
thf heads of the enemy's columns 
which, since the previous day, had been 
more and more entangling themselves 
in these difficult passes. 

Of Soult's three divisions, one was to 
assist Davoust on the right, while the 
other two, already formed in columns 
of attack, were to hold themselves ready 
to throw their force on the Pratzen 
plateau. 

Bernadotte's two divisions were to 
advance against the same position on 
Soult's left. This combined onslaught 
of four divisions on the centre of the 
Russo-Austrians which they had weak- 
ened by the movement to their left, 
would be supported by the Emperor 
himself with the Imperial Guard and 
the Grenadiers of Oudinot and Duroc. 
Lannes was ordered to hold the left, 
particularly the " Santon " height; 
while Prince Murat, at the head of his 
horsemen, was to charge through the 
intervals of the infantry upon the allied 
cavalry which appeared to be in great 
strength in that part of the field. 

Napoleon's Strategy. 
It was thus Napoleon's intention to 
await and check the enemy's attacks 
which might be expected on both his 
flanks, and more especially on his right, 
while he himself made a determined 
and formidable movement against their 
centre, where he hoped to cut them in 
two, and then, from the dominant posi- 
tion of the Pratzen plateau, turn an 
overwhelming force against the masses 
on their too-far-advanced left, which, 
entangled and cramped in its action 
among the lakes, would then be crushed 
or forced to yield as prisoners. 



It was eight o'clock. The thick 
wintry mist hung in the valley of the 
Goldbach and rolled upwards to the 
Pratzen plateau. Its obscurity, height- 
ened by the lingering smoke of bivouac 
fires, concealed the French columns of 
attack. The thunder of artillery and 
the rattle of musketry told that the al- 
lied attack on the French right had 
begun and was being strenuously re- 
sisted, while silence and darkness 
reigned over the rest of the line. Sud- 
denly, over the heights, the sun rose, 
brilliantly piercing the mist and light- 
ing the battle-field — the " Sun of Aus- 
terlitz," of which Napoleon ever after 
loved to recall the remembrance. 

Furious Onslaught. 

The moment of action for the French 
centre had come, and the corps of Soult 
and Bernadotte, led by the divisions of 
Vandamme and St. Hilaire, rushed for- 
wards. No influence that could animate 
the minds of these gallant troops was 
wanting. They fought directly under the 
eye of their Emperor. They were led 
by chiefs in whom they had implicit 
confidence. 

The Pratzen height was escladed at 
the double, attacked in front and on 
the right and left, and the appearance 
of the assailants was so sudden and un- 
expected, as they issued from the cur- 
tain of mist, that the Russians were 
completely surprised. They had no 
defensive formation ready, and were 
still occupied in the movement towards 
their left. They hastily formed in three 
lines, however, and some of their ar- 
tillery were able to come into action. 
Their resistance was feeble. One after 
another, their lines, broken by the stern 
bayonet charge, were driven back in 



336 



BATTLES OF AUSTERUTZ AND JENA. 



hopeless confusion, and at nine o'clock 
Napoleon was master of the Pratzen 
plateau. 

Meanwhile, on the left, Lannes and 
Murat were fighting- an independent 
battle with the Princes lyichtenstein 
and Bagration. Murat, as the senior 
marshal and brother-in-law of the Em- 
peror, was nominally the superior ; but, 
in real fact, Lannes, directed the opera- 
tions of the infantry, which Murat pow- 
erfully supplemented and aided with 
his cavalry. General Caffarelli's divi- 
sion was formed on the plain on Lan- 
nes' s right, while General Suchet's di- 
vision was on his left, supported by the 
"Santon" height, from which poured 
the fire of eighteen heavy guns. 

Dashing Cavalry Charge. 

The light cavalry brigades of Mil- 
haud and Treilhard were pushed for- 
ward in observation across the high 
road to Olmutz. The cavalry divisions 
of Kellermann, Walther, Nansouty, and 
d'Hautpoul were disposed in two mas- 
sive columns of squadrons on the right 
of Caflfarelli. Against this array were 
brought eighty-two squadrons of ca- 
valry under Lichtenstein, supported by 
the serried divisions of Bagration's 
infantry and a heavy force of artil- 
lery. 

The combat was commenced by the 
light cavalry of Kellermann, which 
charged and overthrew the Russo- Aus- 
trian advanced guard. Attacked in turn 
by the Uhlans of the Grand Duke Con- 
stantine, Kellermann retired through 
the intervals of Caffarelli's division, 
which, by a well-sustained fire in two 
ranks, checked the Uhlans and emptied 
many of their saddles. Kellermann re- 
formed his division and again charged, 



supported by Sebastiani's brigade of 
Dragoons. 

Then followed a succession of charges 
by the chivalry of France, led by Mu- 
rat with all the elan of his boiling cour- 
age. Kellermann, Walther, and Sebas- 
tian! were all wounded, the first two 
generals seriously. In the last of these 
charges the 5 th Chasseurs, commanded 
by Colonel Corbineau, broke the forma- 
tion of a Russian battalion and cap- 
tured its standard. Caffarelli's infantry 
were close at hand, and, pushing for- 
ward, made an Austrian battalion lay 
down its arms. 

A regiment of Russian Dragoons 
made a desperate advance to rescue 
their comrades, and, mistaking them 
for Bavarians in the smoke and turmoil, 
Murat ordered the French infantry to 
cease firing. The Russian Dragoons, 
thus encountering no resistance, pene- 
trated the French ranks and almost 
succeeded in taking Murat himself pri- 
soner^ But, consummate horseman and 
man-at-arms as he was, he cut his way 
to safety through the enemy, at the 
head of his personal escort. 

The Russians Hurled Back. 

The allies profited by this diversion 
to again assume the offensive. Then 
came the opportunity for the gigantic 
Cuirassiers of Nansouty, which hurled 
the Russian cavalry back upon their 
infantry, and, in three successive on- 
slaughts, scattered the infantry itself, 
inflicting terrible losses with their long, 
heavy swords, and seizing eight pieces 
of artillery. The whole of Cafiarelli's 
division advanced, supported by one of 
Bernadotte's divisions from the centre, 
and, changing its front to the right, cut 
the centre of Bagration's infantry, 



BATTI<BS OF AUSTBRLITZ AND JENA. 



537 



driving its greater part towards Pratzen, 
separated from those who still fought 
at the extremity of their line. 

The Austro-Russian cavalry rallied 
in support of Bagration, who was now 
hotly pressed by Suchet. Then came 
a magnificently combined movement of 
Dragoons, Cuirassiers, and infantry. 
The Dragoons drove back the Austro- 
Russian squadrons behind their infan- 
try. Simultaneously followed the lev- 
elled bayonets of Suchet' s division and 
the crushing shock of d'Hautpoul's 
mail-clad warriors. The victory was 
decided — the Russian battalions were 
crushed, losing a standard, eleven guns, 
and 1 , 800 prisoners. 

Allied Army Shattered. 

The rout was completed by the rapid 
advance of the light cavalry brigades 
of Treilhard and Milhaud on the left, 
and of Kellermann on the right, which 
swept away all that encountered them, 
and drove the shattered allied troops 
towards the village of Austerlitz. The 
Russo- Austrian losses on this part of 
the field of battle amounted to 1,200 
or 1,500 killed, 7,000 or 8,000 prisoners, 
two standards, and twenty-seven pieces 
of artillery. 

While Napoleon had thus struck a 
heavy blow at the allied centre and had 
been completely victorious on his left, 
his right, under Davoust, was with difii- 
culty holding its own against Buxhow- 
den (who had assumed the command of 
the columns of Doctorof and Kien- 
mayer), and but that the masses brought 
against it were unable to deploy their 
strength it must inevitably have been 
crushed. Thirty thousand foemen of 
all arms were pressing in assault upon 
xo,ooo French, already wearied by a 
22 



long and rapid march to their position 
at Raygern. But Davoust was able to 
concentrate what power he had, and to 
meet at advantage the heads only of 
the columns which were winding their 
way along the narrow passes that opened 
between the lakes and through the 
marshy ground in his front. 

A Critical Moment. 

Even so the strain was terrible, and 
would have been more than less hardy 
troops under a less able and determined 
leader could have stood. But Napoleon 
was quite alive to the necessities of the 
gallant soldiers who were standing their 
ground so staunchly. He ordered his 
reserve of Grenadiers and the Imperial 
Guard to move up to the support of his 
right centre and to threaten the flank 
of the columns that were attacking 
Davoust, while he also directed the two 
divisions of Soult's corps, which had 
made the attack on the Pratzen plateau 
against Buxhowden's rear. 

It was one o'clock, and at this mo- 
ment, while the orders just given were 
being executed, the Russian infantry, 
supported by the Russian Imperial 
Guard, made a desperate effort to re- 
trieve the fortunes of the day near 
Pratzen, and threw themselves in a 
fierce bayonet charge on the divisions 
of Vandamme and St. Hilaire, whic^. 
offered a stout resistance. But, with 
the Russian Guard ready to join in the 
combat, the odds against the French 
divisions were too great. It was the 
crisis of the day. 

Napoleon, from the commanding po- 
sition where he stood, saw before him 
the Emperor Alexander's guard advanc- 
ing in dense masses to regain their 
morning position and to sweep before 



338 



BATTLES OF AUSTERUTZ AND JENA. 



them his men, wearied and harassed 
by the day's struggle. At the same 
time he heard on his right the redoubled 
fire of the advanced Russian left, which 
was pressing Davoust and was threat- 
ening his rear. From the continued 
and increasing roar of musketry and 
artillery it almost seemed as if success 
must, after all, attend the great flank 
movement of the allies. Small wonder 
if even his war-hardened nerves felt a 
thrill of confusion and anxiety when 
he saw dimly appearing through the 
battle smoke another black mass of 
moving troops. 

Panic- Stricken Fugitives. 

" Ha ! Can those, too, be Russians ?" 
he exclaimed to the solitary staff-officer 
whom the exigencies of the day had 
still left at his side. Another look re- 
assured him, however. The tall bear- 
skins of the moving column showed 
him that it was his own Guard, which, 
under Duroc, was moving towards the 
lakes to the support of Soult and Da- 
voust. His right and rear were, at any 
rate so far safe. 

But the Russian intantry attack had 
been followed by a headlong charge of 
the Chevalier Guards and Cuirassiers of 
the Russian Guard, under the Grand 
Duke Constantine, brother of the Em- 
peror Alexander, supported by numer- 
ous lines of cavalry. So well led and 
so impetuous was the attack, that the 
two battalions on the left of Vandam- 
me's division were broken and swept 
away in headlong flight. One of these 
battalions belonged to the 4th of the 
line, of which Napoleon's brother Joseph 
was colonel, and the Emperor saw it 
lose its eagle and abandon its position, 
shattered and destroyed, forming the 



one dark spot to sully the brilliancy of 
French steadfastness on that day of 
self-devotion. 

The tide of panic-stricken fugitives 
almost surged against the Emperor 
himself. All efforts to rally them were 
in vain. Maddened with fear, they 
heard not the voices of generals and 
officers imploring them not to abandon 
the field of honor and their Emperor. 
Their only response was to gasp out 
mechanically: "Vive I'Empereur!" 
while still hurrying their frantic pace. 
Napoleon smiled at them in pity ; then, 
with a gesture of contempt, he said : 
" lyct them go ! " and, still calm in the 
midst of the turmoil, sent General 
Rapp to bring up the cavalry of his 
Guard. 

A Bloody Struggle. 

Rapp was titulai '^■nlonel of the Ma- 
melukes, a corps which reached the 
glories of Egypt and the personal re- 
gard which Napoleon, as a man, had 
been able to inspire into Orientals. 
They, with the Grenadiers-a-Cheval 
and the Chasseurs of the Guard, now 
swooped upon the Russian squadrons. 
The struggle of the melee was bloody 
and obstinate between the picked 
horsemen of Western and Eastern 
Europe ; but the Russian chivalry was 
at length overwhelmed and driven back 
with immense loss. 

Many standards and prisoners fell 
into the hands of the French, amongst 
others Prince Repnin, Colonel of the 
Chevalier Guard. His regiment, whose 
ranks were filled with men of the 
noblest families in Russia, had fought 
with a valor worthy of their name, and 
lay almost by ranks upon the field. It 
had been the mark of the giant Greua- 



BATTLES OF AUSTERLITZ AND JENA. 



339 



diers-a-Cheval, whose savage war-cry 
in the great charge had been, as they 
swayed their heavy sabres, " I^et us 
make the dames of St. Petersburg weep 
to-day ! ' ' 

When success was assured, Rapp re- 
turned to report to Napoleon — a war- 
like figure, as he approached, alone, at 
a gallop, with proud mein, the light of 
battle in his eye, his sword dripping 
with blood and a sabre cut on his fore- 
head. 

A Gallant Exploit. 

"Sire, we have overthrown and de- 
stroyed the Russian Guard and taken 
their artillery." 

•'It was gallantly done : I saw it," 
replied the Emperor. "But you are 
wounded." 

"It is nothing, sire: it is only a 
scratch.'' 

" It is another quartering of nobility, 
and I know of none that can be more 
illustrious." 

Immediately afterwards the young 
Count Apraxin, an officer of artillery 
who had been taken prisoner by the 
Chasseurs, was brought before Napo- 
leon. He struggled, wept, and wrung 
his hands in despair, crying : " I have 
lost my battery ; I am dishonored : 
would that I could die!" Napoleon 
tried to console and soothe him with the 
words, "Calm yourself, young man, 
and learn that there is never disgrace 
in being conquered by Frenchmen." 

The French army was now com- 
pletely successful on its centre and left. 
In the distance could be seen, retiring 
towards Ansterlitz, the remains of the 
Russian reserves, which had relin- 
quished hope of regaining the central 
plateau and abandoned Buxhowden's 



wing to its fate. Their retreat was 
harassed by the artillery of the Impe- 
rial Guard, whose fire ploughed through 
their long columns, carrying with it 
death and consternation. Napoleon left 
to Murat and Ivannes the completion of 
their own victory. To Bernadotte, with 
the greater part of the Guard, he entrust- 
ed the final crushing of the enemies who 
had been driven from the Pratzen pla- 
teau ; while he himself, with all of 
Soult's corps, the remainder of his cav- 
alry, infantry, and reserve artillery de- 
scended from the heights and threw 
himself on the rear of the Austro-Rus- 
sian left near Telnitz and the lakes. 
This unfortunate wing — nearly 30,000 
men — had in vain striven, since the 
moi ning, to force its way through Da- 
voust's 10,000. 

Valor Was in Vain. 

Now, still checked in front and en- 
tangled in the narrow roads by the 
Goldbach and the lakes, it found itself 
in hopeless confusion, attacked and 
ravaged with fire from three sides simul- 
taneously by Davoust, Soult, Duroc 
with his Grenadiers and Vandamme. 
It fought with a gallantry and stern- 
ness which drew forth the admiration 
of its enemies, but surrounded, driven, 
overwhelmed, it could not hope to ex- 
tricate itself from its difficulties. There 
was no way of escape open but the 
Menitz lake itself, whose frozen surface 
seemed to present a path to safety, and 
in an instant the white expanse was 
blackened by the flying multitude. 

The most horribly disastrous phase 
of the whole battle was at hand. The 
shot of the French artillery which was 
firing on the retreat broke the ice at 
many points, and its frail support gave 



340 



BATTLES OF AUSTERLITZ AND JENA. 



way. The water welled through the 
cracks and washed over the broken 
fragments. Thousands of Russians, 
with horses, artillery and train, sank 
into the lake and were engulfed. Few 
succeeded in struggling to the shore 
and taking advantage of the ropes and 
other assistance which their conquerors 
strove to put within their reach. About 
2,000, who had been able to remain on 
the road between the two lakes, made 
good their retreat. The remainder were 
either dead or prisoners. 

Suspected Traitor. 

At four o'clock in the afternoon the 
battle was over, and there was nothing 
left for the French to do but to pursue 
and collect the spoils of their conquest. 
This duty was performed with energy 
by all the commanders except Berna- 
dotte (even then more than suspected 
of disloyalty to his great chief), who 
allowed the whole of the Russo-Aus- 
trian right, which had been defeated 
by Lannes and Murat and driven from 
its proper line of retreat on Olmutz, to 
defile scatheless past his front and to 
seek shelter in the direction of Hungary. 

After the great catastrophe on the 
Menitz lake which definitely sealed the 
issue of the conflict. Napoleon passed 
slowly along the whole battle-field, 
from the French right to their left. 
The ground was covered with piles of 
the poor remains of those who had died 
a soldier's death, and with vast numbers 
of wounded laid suffering on the frozen 
plain. Surgeons and ambulances were 
already everywhere at work, but their 
efforts were feeble in comparison with 
the shattered, groaning multitude who 
were in dire need of help. The Emperor 
paused by every disabled follower and 



spoke words of sympathy and comfort. 
He himself, with his personal attend- 
ants and his staff, did all in their power 
to mitigate the pangs of each and to 
give some temporary relief till better 
assistance should arrive. 

As the shades of night fell on the 
scene of slaughter and destruction, the 
mist of the morning again rolled over 
the plain, bringing with it an icy rain, 
which increased the darkness. Na- 
poleon ordered the strictest silence to 
be maintained, that no faint cry from 
a miserable sufferer should pass un- 
heard ; and his surgeon Ywan, with his 
Mameluke orderly Roustan, gave to 
many a one, who would otherwise have 
died, a chance of life by binding up 
their hurts and restoring their powers 
with a draught of brandy from the Im- 
perial canteen. 

Care for the Wounded. 

It was nearly ten o'clock at night 
when the Emperor arrived at the Ol- 
mutz road, having almost felt his way 
from one wounded man to another as 
they lay where each attack had been 
made and each, stubborn defense main- 
tained. He passed the night at the 
small posthouse of Posoritz, supping on 
a share of the soldiers' rations, which 
was "Brought from the nearest bivouac, 
and issuing order after order about 
searching for the wounded and convey- 
ing them to the field hospitals. Though 
many of the most noted leaders in the; 
French army were wounded in the 
great battle, comparatively few were 
killed. One of the most distinguished 
dead was General Morland, who com- 
manded the Cliasseurs-a-Cheval of the 
Guard. His regiment had suffered ter- 
rible losses in the charge under Rapp 



BATTLES OF AUSTERI.1T2 AND JENA. 



Si\ 



against the Russian Guard, and he 
himself had fallen, fighting amongst 
the foremost. 

Napoleon, who was always anxious 
to do everything to raise the spirit of 
his troops and to excite their emulation, 
ordered that the body of General Mor- 
land should be preserved and conveyed 
to Paris, there to be interred in a spec- 
ially magnificent tomb which he pro- 
'^ posed to build on the Esplanade of the 
"* Invalides. The doctors with the army 
had neither the time nor the materials 
necessary to embalm the general's body, 
so, as a simple means of conservation, 
they enclosed it in a barrel of rum, 
which was taken to Paris. But cir- 
cumstances delayed the construction of 
the tomb which the Bmperor intended 
for its reception until the fall of the 
Empire in 1814. When the barrel was 
then opened for the private interment 
of the body by General Morland's rela- 
tions, they were astonished to find that 
the rum had made the dead general's 
moustaches grow so extraordinarily 
that they reached below his waist. 

The Host in Flight. 
The defeat suffered by the Russians 
was so crushing, and their army had 
been thrown into such confusion, that 
all who had escaped from the disaster 
of Austerlitz fled with all speed to 
Galicia, where there was a hope of be- 
ing beyond the reach of the conqueror. 
The rout was complete.. The French 
made a large number of prisoners, and 
found the roads covered with abandoned 
guns, baggage, and material of war. 
The Emperor Alexander, overcome by 
* his misfortunes, left it to his ally, 
Francis II., to treat with Napoleon, 
and authorized him to make the best 



terms he could for both the defeated 
empires. 

On the very evening of the 2d of De- 
cember the Emperor of Austria had 
asked for an interview with Napoleon, 
and the victor met the vanquished on 
the 4th. An armistice was signed on 
the 6th, which was shortly afterwards 
followed by a treaty of peace concluded 
at Presburg. 

The total losses of the Austro-Rus- 
sians at Austerlitz were about 10,000 
killed, 30,000 prisoners, 46 standards, 
186 cannon, 400 artillery caissons, and 
all their baggage. Their armies prac- 
tically no longer existed, and only 
about 25,000 disheartened men could 
be rallied from the wreck. 

Generous to the Conquered. 

In the joy of victory Napoleon showed 
himself generous to Austria and Russia 
in the terms which he imposed, and he 
at once set free Prince Repnin, with all 
of the Russian Imperial Guard who had 
fallen into his hands. To his own army 
he was lavish of rewards and acknowl- 
edgements of its valor, and in the fam- 
ous order of the day which he published 
he first made use of the well-known 
expression— "Soldiers, I am content 
with you." Besides a large distribu- 
tion of prize-money to his troops, he 
decreed that liberal pensions should be 
granted to the widows of the fallen, and 
also that their orphan children should 
be cared for, brought up, and settled 
in life at the expense of the State. 

The campaign of Austerlitz is prob- 
ably the most striking and dramatic of 
all those undertaken by Napoleon, and 
its concluding struggle was the most 
complete triumph of his whole career. 
It was th'^: first in which he engaged 



342 



BATTIvES OF AUSTERUTZ AND JENA. 



after assuming the title of Emperor and 
becoming the sole and irresponsible 
ruler of France. Unlike the vast masses 
of men which he directed in subsequent 
wars, his army was then almost entirely 
composed of Frenchmen, and its glories 
belonged to France alone. Though for 
several years to come the great Emper- 
or's fame was to remain undimmed by 
the clouds of reverse, it never shone 
with a brighter lustre than at the close 
of 1805. 

Fierce Battle of Jena. 

As the bloody battle of Austerlitz 
was one of those great pivotal strug- 
gles that decide the fate of empires, 
so was the equally sanguinary and de- 
cisive battle of Jena. Never was the 
superb courage of the far-famed Murat 
and other great leaders more gallantly 
displayed than on that historic field. 

To the Prussian people 1806 was a 
terrible year, and their subsequent re- 
prisals of 1 8 14, 181 5, and even of 1870, 
did not efface the memory of Jena, as 
the French elect to call the little Saxon 
town. Whatever difference of opinion 
may exist as to the good faith of Napo- 
leon and the Prussian Government re- 
spectively in their diplomatic relations, 
all are agreed that the military spirit of 
Prussia hastened on the war ; and never 
did nation undertake hostilities at a 
more unfortunate moment or in clum- 
sier fashion. '' 

The French army, returning slowly 
from its glorious campaign of Auster- 
litz, was close at hand, and flushed 
with victory ; and although in rags, 
with its pay held advisedly in arrears, 
it was in high moral feather, and look- 
ing forward to the fetes that were pro- 
mised it when it should arrive in France. 



The Prussian army, on the othei 
hand, while full ©f undoubted courage, 
was precisely in that condition one 
would expect as the result of its ruling 
system. Its regiments were farmed out 
by their colonels ; class distinction was 
rife among the officers, and the men 
were ruled by " Corporal Schlague " — 
in other words, flogged unmercifully 
into shape. Their drill and traditions 
went back to days of Frederick the 
Great, and the only pension granted to 
the discharged veteran was a license to 
beg publicly! 

Wretched was the condition of the 
soldier, even when serving, yet it was 
this army, with little or no sympathy 
between its officers and meis, strapped 
up in tight uniforms, hampered with 
absurd regulations, and in every re- 
spect half a century behind l;he times, 
that sharpened its sabres on the door- 
steps of the French ambassador at Ber- 
lin, and clamored wildly to engage the 
invincible legions of the Emperor. 

Disastrous Defeat. 

It had its wish, against the better 
judgment of its sovereign, and met 
with perhaps the most crushing defeat 
recorded in history, being sacrificed to 
the gross stupidity of its leaders, of 
whom a word must be said here in jus- 
tice to the army itself. 

The Duke of Brunswick, its actual 
commander-in-chief, the father of the 
unfortunate English Queen Caroline, 
was seventy years old, and credited with 
a great military reputation, though au- 
thentic proofs of it may be searched for 
in vain. He had fought under the cele- 
brated Frederick, who disliked him, 
and had been beaten by the riff-raff in 
the wars of the Revolution. One re- 



BATTlvES 01? AUSTERLITZ AND JKNA. 



34a 



view day at Magdeburg, when a field- 
marslial, he sprang from the saddle, al- 
lowed his charger to run loose, and 
caned a non-commissioned officer for 
some mistake in a manoeuvre ; but 
nevertheless it was into the hands of 
this egregious old dolt that the Prussian 
fortunes were entrusted. 

Held a Long Pow-wow. 

Associated with Brunswick — and in 
truth they seem to have been unable to 
do anything without previously holding 
a long pow-wow when they ought to 
have been marching — were Marshal Mol- 
lendorf, a worn-out old man of eighty- 
two ; Prince Frederick Louis of Hohen- 
lohe-Ingelfingen, an infantry general, 
whose sixty years had afforded him lit- 
tle opportunity of distinction in the 
field ; Colonel Massenbach, Hohenlohe's 
quartermaster-general, whose practical 
advice was not listened to, probably 
because it was practical; and several 
other officers, some of whom distin- 
guished themselves later on in the War 
of Liberty, but the majority men of no 
account, who squabbled at the councils, 
disobeyed orders, and had nothing but 
personal bravery to commend them. 

At the head of the younger branch of 
officers was Prince Louis Ferdinand, a 
dashing, hare-brained young fellow, 
whose passion was pretty equally divi- 
ded between the worship of Venus and 
Mars, and whose early death was much 
deplored. Between the two factions, 
ancient and modern, there was per- 
petual strife, and between these two 
stools, which the energetic French 
kicked over in an incredibly short time, 
the Prussian army came heavily to the 
ground. 

" The insolent braggarts shall soon 



learn that our weapons need no sharp- 
ening!" said Napoleon, when Marbot 
told him of the affront to his ambassa- 
dor ; and again, when he read the fool- 
ish demand that his troops should cross 
the Rhine and abandon German terri- 
tory by a given date, he exclaimed to 
Bertheir, " Prince, we will be punctu- 
ally at the rendezvous ; but instead of 
being in France on the 8th, we will be 
in Saxony." 

The October of i8o6 was a splendid 
month — a slight frost during the nights, 
but the days magnificent, with white 
camuli rolling across the blue, when 
the blue was not entirely unclouded ; 
and on the 8th day of that eventful 
month the French advanced in three 
great columns into the rocky valleys 
that led from Franconia to Saxony ; an 
army — when the cavalry and artillery 
of the Guard joined it — of 186,000 men, 
led by masters in the art of war. 

Napoleon in the Ranks. 

The Emperor accompanied the centre 
column, composed of the infantry of 
the Guard, under Lefebvre, husband of 
the well-known "Madame Sans-Gene," 
Bernadotte's ist corps, Davout's 3d 
Corps, and Murat's Cavalry Reserve; 
the whole marching by Kronach on the 
road to Schleitz and Jena. The right 
column consisting of Soult's 4th and 
Ney's 6th Corps with a Bavarian divis- 
ion, set out for HofF by forced marches, 
and the left, made up of Lannes with 
the 5th Corps and Augereau with the 
7th, turned its face towards Coburg, 
Grafenthal, and Saalfeld. 

The Prussians, to the number of 125,- 
000, which did not include garrisons 
and sundry detached forces, were also 
divided into three bodies; General 



344 



BATtI.ES OF AUStERLlTZ AND JENA. 



Rucliel with the right, 30,000, being 
on the Hessian frontier about Eisenach ; 
the main army of 55,000, under Bruns- 
wick and the King in person, around 
Magdeburg ; and the left wing, under 
Hohenlohe, 40,000 strong, being ad- 
"^'■anced towards the enemy round and 
about the fortified places of Schleitz, 
Saalfeld, Saalburg, and Hoflf, in defi- 
ance of Brunswick's orders, which de- 
sired Hohenlohe to recross the Saale 
and take post behind the mountains 
, that rise above that river. 

Dense Ignorance. 

Their motive was to cut off Napoleon 
from his base in the Maine valley ; but 
directly they heard that his march was 
directed towards their left and centre, 
they changed their plans and attempted 
a concentration about Weimar, which 
exposed their magazines, threw their 
flank invitingly open to the enemy, and 
necessitated marches by cross roads and 
byways in a country of which extraor- 
dinary fact, their staff possessed no re- 
liable map ! 

While this movement was in progress 
the French came upon them, and struck 
the first blow at the little town of Saal- 
burg, where a portion of Hohenlohe's 
men under General Tauenzien were en- 
trenched behind the river. It was the 
first day of the advance, and Murat, with 
some light cavalry and the famous 27th 
lyight Infantry, lost no time in falling to. 

Some cannon-shots, an advance of the 
27th I/Cger, and Tauenzien melted away 
in the direction of Schleitz, where on 
the 9th, about noon, the centre found 
him drawn up beyond the Wisenthal 
in order of battle with his back against 
a height. While Bernadotte, who com- 
manded, was reconnoitring, Napoleon 



arrived, and ordered the attack. Ber- 
nadotte sent the 27th Leger forward 
under General Maisons, and the regi- 
ment quickly debouched from the town 
upon the enemy; but finding himself 
in the presence of a superior force, 
Tauenzien again ordered a retreat. 

Terrific Oombat, 

The 94th and 95th of the lyine under 
Drouet followed close on their heels, 
mounted the height, and hastened down 
the other slope; while Murat, riding at 
the head of the 4th Hussars — the regi- 
ment in which Marshal Ney had made 
his debut as a private — charged the 
cavalry that turned upon him. At the 
first shock the 4th overthrew the Prus- 
sians ; but they were reinforced by sev- 
eral fresh squadrons, and Murat sent for 
the 5th Chasseurs post haste, who com- 
ing up at the gallop flung their green 
and yellow ranks into the melee. 

Tauenzien hurled his hussars and the 
red Saxon dragoons against the two 
regiments, and matters looked serious 
for Murat, although Captain Razout of 
the 94th opened from an ambuscade and 
killed fifty of them ; but Maisons arriv- 
ing with five companies of the 27th 
Leger poured in such a terrible fire that 
200 red troopers went down in a mass 
and the rest bolted. These dragoons 
were antiquated-looking fellows, with 
cocked hats and pigtails, their officers 
riding with huge canes significantly 
dangling from wrist or saddle ; and as 
they went about to the rear of the 4th 
Hussars and the 5 th Chasseurs re-formed 
and spurred in pursuit, driving them 
into the woods among their disorgan- 
ized infantry. 

It was short and sharp, but the effect 
upon the Prussians — who left 2,000 



i 



BATTLES OF AUSTERLITZ AND JBNA. 



84& 



muskets behind them in their flight, 
nearly 500 prisoners, and 300 killed and 
wounded — was serious. 

Murat still pushed on, and next day, 
the loth, Lasalle captured the enemy's 
baggage, and a pontoon train. Napoleon 
writing that the cavalry ' ' was saddled 
in gold ; " but on the same day a much 
more important engagement took place 
at Saalfeld between the French left, 
under Marshal lyannes, and Prince 
Ivouis, who commanded Hohenlohe's 
rear-guard. Saalfeld was a little walled 
town of about 5,000 inhabitants, and 
partly to allow time for the evacuation 
of the magazines in its rear, partly from 
a burning desire to fight, Prince Louis 
obtained Hohenlohe's permission to re- 
main there. 

A Strong Character. 

He was then thitty-four, brave as a 
lion, but insubordinate, and of very 
loose morals. In Prussia he is regarded 
as a hero, and there is something in his 
oval face as it hangs in the Hohenzoll- 
ern Museum with the hair tied with a 
ribbon, that reminds one of the English 
"Prince Charlie." He had eighteen 
guns, eighteen squadrons of hussars, 
and eleven battalions of infantry ; and 
with that force he rashly engaged the 
experienced Cannes, who was advanc- 
ing with 25,000 troops, although in 
effect only the artillery, two regiments 
of cavalry, and the division of Suchet 
came into action. The division of 
Suchet found itself before the enemy at 
7 o'clock in the morning. 

Instantly ranging his guns on the 
heights that commanded the Prussians, 
Lannes opened fire, and sent part of 
Suchet' s skirmishers through the woods 
to gall Prince Louis' right. Until 



nearly i o'clock the Prussians stood 
their ground, but Suchet working round 
in their rear and Lannes pouring down 
upon them in front, they broke and fled, 
leaving fifteen guns behind them. 

Two Gallant Charges. 

Louis charged gallantly with two 
cavalry regiments flanked by the white- 
uniformed Saxon Hussars, but Clapa- 
rede's and Vedel's brigades routed them, 
and they also retreated. Rallying them 
with difiiculty, he charged again at the 
head of the Saxon Hussars, whose tall 
flowerpot shakoes and bright blue 
pelisses were soon jumbled together in 
a confused mass among the willow- 
fringed marshes by the river bank, 
where the scarlet and blue 9th, and the 
light blue loth Hussars made short 
work of them. 

So far the French advance had been 
a succession of triumphs, destined to 
continue without rebuff for the rest of 
the war ; and as the Prussian spirit sank 
at the news of each defeat, that of the 
invaders rose. Reviewing the 2d Chas- 
seurs-a-Cheval at Lobenstein on the 12th 
of October, Napoleon asked Colonel 
Bousson how many men he had pre- 
sent. 

" Five hundred, sire," said the colonel; 
" but there are many raw troops among 
them." 

" What does that signify ? Are they 
not all Frenchmen?" was the angry 
reply ; and turning to the regiment, he 
cried, "My lads, you must not feai 
death : when soldiers defy death they 
drive him into the enemy's ranks," 
with a motion of his arm which called 
forth a sudden convulsive movement 
among the squadrons and a wild shout 
of enthusiasm. 



346 



BATTI.es of AUSTERLITZ and JENA. 



The losses of the Prussians at Saal- 
feld, which are variously stated seemed 
to have been about thirty guns, a thou- 
sand prisoners, and a similar number 
of killed and wounded, together with a 
quantity of baggage ; but these were 
only the shadows of coming events, 
and the French columns moved on 
swiftly, learning by the capture of the 
post-bag that the enemy were moving 
on Weimar from Erfurt. 

Fled, in Disorder. 

Hohenlohe's troops were ordered to 
place the hills and forests of Thuringia 
between them and the victorious foe, 
and, worn out by marching, were 
struggling on in the midst of wagon- 
trains, and bad roads, when fugitives 
from Saalfeld spread terror among them, 
and they fled in disorder across the 
Saale into Jena. Napoleon likewise 
concentrated his troops, and a map 
must be studied to understand their 
movements in and among towns and 
villages unknown outside the history 
of this campaign. 

A strong barrier now Intervened be- 
tween the tv/o armies, French and Prus- 
sian, the river Saale flowing, roughly, 
northward to the Elbe through hilly 
country, and only passable to an army 
at five points where there were bridges 
— viz., at Jena, Lobstadt, Dornburg, 
Camburg, and Koser, the latter place 
opposite Naumburg. 

The Prussians having gone helter- 
skelter across that river at Jena, they 
were virtually hemmed in an angle, 
formed by the Thuringian Mountains 
to the south and the Saale to the west, 
so that as their fortresses, their remain- 
ing magazines, and their very capital 
lay open to the enemy, they had but 



two alternatives — either to make anothei 
long flank march to the line of the 
Elbe or to stay where they were and 
defend the Saale and its fringe of hills. 
The Duke of Brunswick, however, 
seems to have had a genius for keeping 
himself out of harm's way ; and leaving 
Hohenlohe to defend the heights of 
Jena, though with strict orders not to 
attack, and Ruchel to collect the out- 
lying forces at Weimar, he set off with 
his five divisions, bag and baggage, to 
pass the Saale at Naumburg and reach 
the line of the Elbe, hastened in this 
fatal decision by the news of Davout's 
advance on Naumburg — in other words, 
he ran away with 65,000 mea and left 
others to do the fighting. 

Grim Surprises. 

On the 13th of October the army 
started — ominous date for the supersti- 
tiously inclined ; and on the same day 
Napoleon, expecting to find the entire 
enemy before him, set out from Gera 
for Jena, having despatched Montes- 
quieu, one of his ofiicers of ordinance, 
to the King of Prussia with proposals 
of peace — in reality to gain time for his 
troops to come up. It was, to a great 
extent, a game of cross-purposes ; for 
Brunswick, anticipating a free passage 
at Naumburg, found Davout and death; 
Napoleon, expecting the whole Prus- 
sian army beyond Jena, found only its 
rear-guard; and Hohenlohe, looking for 
Lannes and Augereau, received the full 
weight of the Emperor himself with 
the bulk of his forces. 

lyannes preceded the Emperor, ana 
had a sharp skirmish with TaueMzien 
beyond the little university town of 
Jena, and when Napoleon arrived some 
of the quaint gabled houses were burn- 



batti,e:s of austerutz and jena. 



347 



ing — ignited, it is said, by the Prussian 
batteries. Jena nestles under the lea 
of a range of hills, the most important 
being the lyandgrafenberg ; and the 
high road to Weimar runs through a 
difficult valley named the Muhlthal 
from the paper-mill which stood there. 

A Saxon Parson. 

Having no mind to force that defile, 
which determined men might have 
rendered a veritable Thermopylae, the 
Emperor made a reconnaissance with 
Lannes under fire to find some means 
of carrying the army over the hills on 
to the plateau beyond, where he should 
find the Prussians and a natural battle- 
ground. I^annes's tirailleurs had cap- 
tured a pass, but it was useless for ar. 
tillery ; and it was a Saxon parson, 
exasperated at the sight of the burning 
town, who pointed out a path on the 
lyandgrafenberg itself, by which, with 
the help of the sappers, the French 
could get up their guns. For this ac- 
tion the worthy man endured such after 
persecution that he was obliged to leave 
the country and reside in Paris. 

How they cut away the rock and 
hauled each cannon to the summit with 
teams of twelve horses apiece, how the 
battery that was to open fire next morn- 
ing stuck fast in the dark and was as- 
sisted by Napoleon with a lantern in 
his hand, is well known. During the 
long, cold night the Prussian bivouac 
fires lit up the horizon beyond the hill- 
tops, but those of the French army 
made only a faint gleam high up on the 
crest of the mountain, and the enemy 
saw nothing to warn them that 40,000 
men were tightly packed there, the 
crossbelts of one almost touching the 
cowskin pack of his front rank. 



Suchet's division lay waiting for 
dawn with its right on the Rauhthal 
ravine ; Gazan lurked on the left before 
the village of Cospoda, 4,000 of the 
Guard formed a huge square, in the 
centSie of which the Emperor snatched 
a short repose, and the engineers were 
busy widening the Steiger path for the 
passage of the guns. 

The Capitaine Cogniet, then a private 
in the Grenadiers of the Guard, has 
told us how twenty men per company 
were allowed to descend into the nar- 
row streets of the deserted town below 
them to search for food ; how they 
found it in plenty, together with good 
wine in the cellars of the hotels, each 
grenadier bringing back three bottles, 
two in his fur cap, and one in his pocket, 
with which they drank to the health of 
the King of Prussia ; how they imbibed 
hot wine all night, carrying it to the 
artillery, who were half-dead with fa- 
tigue ; and — ingenuous Cogniet ! — con- 
fessing that the Guard up on the moun- 
tain side were all more or less elevated 
in a double sense. 

Shrouded in Fog. 

At last the morning came, but with 
it a fog so thick that the enemy were 
invisible. Napoleon had been astir at 
four o'clock, and having sent his final 
orders to his marshals, issued from the 
curtains of his blue and white striped 
tent, and passed before Ivannes's corps 
by torchlight. 

"Soldiers," said he, "the Prussian 
army is turned as the Austrian was a 
year ago at Ulm. Fear not its renowned 
cavalry; oppose to their charges firm 
squares and the bayonet." 

The cheers of the soldiers still carried 
no warning to the Prussian lines. Theii 



348 



BATTXES OF AUSTERLITZ AND JENA. 



hussars had intercepted Montesquieu 
during the night, and arguing from his 
message of peace that there would be 
no fighting on the 14th, the army had 
made no provision even for the day's 
rations, and lay in the fog in fancied 
security. 

Then, about six, when the mist light- 
^ ened, came a rude awakening. The 
17th IvCger, and a chosen battalion, 
under Claparede, crept forward in sin- 
gle line, flanked by the 34th and 40th 
in close column, commanded by Reille, 
with the 64th and 88th, under Vedel, 
in their rear — in short, Suchet\s division 
making silently for Closwitz, while 
Gazan felt his way towards Cospoda on 
Suchet's left. 

Fire from Ambusli. 

With Gazan were the 21st Leger, and 
the 28th, looth, and 103d of the Line, 
and the two divisions enveloped in the 
fog drew nearer and nearer to the un- 
suspecting foe until, after they had 
groped their way for nearly an hour, 
Claparede suddenly received the fire of 
Zweifel's Prussian battalion and the 
Saxon ones of Frederick Augustus and 
Rechten, seeing only the flash of mus- 
ketry from the wood that surrounded 
Closwitz. The 17th returned the fire 
warmly, firing into the vapor before 
them, but when they saw the trees 
looming up in front, Claparede charged 
and bayoneted them out of the wood 
and village. 

Gazan was also successful in his attack 
on Cospoda, and, advancing farther, 
took the hamlet of Lutzenrode from the 
enemy's fusileiers ; but a withering fire 
was soon opened on both divisions by 
Cerrini's Saxons, which they sustained 
for some time until the 34th, which had 



relieved the 17th, went at them with 
the bayonet and put them to flight, a 
disorder which carried the rest of Tau- 
enzien's corps away, leaving twenty 
cannon and a host of fugitives in the 
hands of L^annes, who followed at a 
swinging pace down hill after the 
cowards. 

In less than two hours they had 
cleared their front for the army on the 
heights to deploy. A lull came about 
nine o'clock, and before the action was 
resumed Ney had arrived at speed ; 
Soult with one division took post behind 
Closwitz ; and Augereau, who was then 
lamenting the loss of his amiable wife, 
after pushing Heudelet, his guns, and 
cavalry along the Muhlthal towards 
Weimar, left the Gibbet Hill with Des- 
jardin and placed himself on Gazan's 
left among the fine fir woods that clothed 
the plateau. 

Preparing for Action. 

The mist was rising and promised to 
break, but it was yet some time before 
the sun shone brightly. Prince Hohen- 
lohe, whom disaster seemed to pursue, 
galloped to his troops, who were en- 
camped on the Weimar road awaiting the 
French left wing as they thought, where 
Tauenzien's fugitives soon alarmed him, 
and called forth his better qualities to 
prepare for a general action. 

Hurrying the Prussian infantry under 
Grawert to occupy Tauenzien's lost posi- 
tions, he posted two Saxon brigades 
under Burgsdorf and Nehroff, Bogus- 
lauski's Prussian battalion, and a strong 
force of artillery to hold the Weimar 
road to the death, with Cerrini, who 
had rallied and been reinforced by four 
Saxon battalions, in support. 

Dyherrn, with five battalions, acted 



BATTI.es of AUSTERI<ITZ and JENA. 



349 



as reserve to Grawert. Tauenzien was 
rallied a long way to the rear, and Hol- 
zendorf, who formed Hohenlohe's left, 
was ordered to attack the French right, 
while he himself should fall on their 
centre with cavalry and guns, pending 
the arrival of Ruchel from Weimar. 

Ready for Onslaught. 

The heights above Jena, the ravines, 
and the dense woods were capable of 
the most stubborn defence, and the 
French would have had to fight climb- 
ing ; but the passage of the Landgrafen- 
berg had altered everything, and as the 
sun shone out about ten o'clock Hohen- 
lohe saw an astonishing spectacle. The 
enemy stretched in dark masses along 
the high ground on his own side of the 
mountain, outnumbering him in the 
proportion of two to one, outflanking 
him to left and right, and prepared to 
foam down the slope and sweep him off 
the face of the earth. 

Nor did the foe allow him much time 
to digest the surprise ; for the impetu- 
ous Ney, who had hurried forward with 
3,000 men and deployed in the mist 
between Lannes and Augereau, flung 
himself upon the village of Vierzehn- 
Heiligen in the very centre of the bat- 
tlefield, and anticipated the Emperor's 
orders for a renewal of the fight. 

Soult with St. Hilaire's division ad- 
vanced from lyobstadt and constituted 
the French right ; Lannes, with Suchet 
and Gazan, formed the centre, and Au- 
gereau having scrambled out of the 
Muhlthal, menaced Iserstadt on the 
left ; the Guard and the artillery being 
in rear, and Murat's cavalry marching 
to join the army. Indignant at the 
firing in his front, Napoleon sent to 
learn from which corps it proceeded, 



and was greatly astonished to find that 
Ney, whom he supposed to be still in 
the rear, was engaging on his own ac- 
count. 

Ney's troops were the 2Sth Leger 
under Colonel Morel, two battalions 
formed of the picked men of several 
regiments, and Colbert's light cavalry 
brigade, formed of the 3d Hussars and 
loth Chasseurs-a-Cheval; and with these 
the marshal attacked Hohenlohe with 
his usual bravery, leading them, as his 
aide-de-camp tells us, "like a coporal 
of the line." Hohenlohe's horse-artil- 
lery was in position, and the loth Chas- 
seurs, forming under cover of a little 
wood, darted out upon it, and took 
seven guns in one swoop under a fear- 
ful fire ; but while they were sabring 
away, the Prussian cuirassiers of Hol- 
zendorf and Prittzwitz's dragoons came 
down with a thunderous rush, and the 
loth went about. 

A Hard Struggle. 

The 3d Hussars, forming behind the 
same trees, spurred on the Prussian 
flank and checked the cuirassiers for a 
moment, but had to retreat in their 
turn; and Ney, throwing his infantry 
into two squares, found himself in a 
bad case at the moment when Napo- 
leon reached a height overlooking the 
conflict. Sending Bertrand to Ney's 
assistance with two light cavalry regi- 
ments, he ordered up Lannes; and the 
gallant Ney made a heroic struggle to 
hold his own, pushing his grenadiers to 
the clump of trees that had sheltered 
his horsemen, and flinging his riflemen 
at Vierzehn-Heiligen itself. 

Up came Lannes at the head of the 
2 1 St Leger, and as Grawert deployed 
before the village in magnificent order, 



350 



BAtTLBS 01^ AUSf ERUT2 AND JENA. 



opening a terrible fire, I^annes led five 
of Claparede's and Gazan's regiments 
to outflank him. In every part of the 
field the crash of musketry and the 
boom of heavy cannon resounded. Na- 
poleon still believed he had the entire 
Prussian army before him, and the stub- 
born resistance justified that opinion. 

Scene of Carnage. 

The Prussian regiments of Zathow 
and Lanitz covered themselves with 
glory before Vierzehn-Heiligen. The 
ouira&siers were true to their traditions 
of Seidlitz and the Seven Years' War ; 
but inch by inch the French gained 
ground, although it was an hour after 
midday before they obtained a perma- 
nent advantage. Hares fled terrified 
about the stubble fields, the soldiers 
cheering them as they fought. The 
October woods were strewn with dead 
men among the fallen leaves, and the 
hollow ways were full of smoke. 

Thanks to the Prussian horse, Ho- 
henlohe took some guns, and his hopes 
were so far raised that he wrote to Ru- 
chel, " At this moment we beat the 
enemy at all points. ' ' He soon learned, 
however, that Soult had almost anni- 
hilated his left wing, and Augereau 
and lyannes under his own eyes drove 
back his right more than half a mile. 

The brave man appeared everywhere 
at once ; now heading his cuirassiers, 
now encouraging the infantry, again 
peering through the clouds that hung 
before the batteries ; but it was all to no 
purpose. Grawert was badly wounded, 
Dyherrn's five battalions fled before 
Augereau, and with a tremendous roll- 
ing of drums the whole French army 
advanced down the slope, the Guard 
included, about two in the afternoon. 



Hohenlohe's next letter to Ruchel 
was significant. " lyose not a moment 
in advancing with your as yet unbroken 
troops. Arrange your columns so that 
through your openings there may pass 
the broken bands of the battle." In 
vain Ruchel arrived at last with 20,000 
men ; Soult fell upon him and they 
made poor stand, the growing rout al- 
ready communicating itself to the new- 
comers. 

The French musicians played under 
the heavy fire ; Ruchel was seriously 
hurt; Hohenlohe's own regiment and 
the grenadiers of Hahn gave way; and, 
most terrible of all, Murat and his 
cavalry came on the scene and over- 
whelmed everything in a whirlwind of 
slaughter. 

Thousands of Bloody Swords. 

No battle can show a carnage more 
merciless and horrible than that surge 
of heavy horsemen among the flying 
Prussians after Jena. They spared noth- 
ing in their path, and every one of 
those fifteen thousand long swords was 
red with blood from point to hilt. 

Ruchel' s men had the double mis- 
fortune to meet both the victorious 
French and their flying countrymen in 
a disorganized mass rolling down hill, 
and though here and there individual 
battalions fought bravely to the last, 
panic seized the whole army and it tore 
madly to the rear. 

Brown- and-gold hussars of Anhalt 
Pless ; light infantry in green jackets 
piped with red; white Saxon hussars 
and grim dragoons with the bristle 
taken out of their moustaches, all 
mingled in a shocking, terror-stricken 
mob, covering the roads and fields for 
miles ; Murat's cuirassiers and dragoons 



BATTLES OF AUSTERLITZ AND JENA. 



351 



slashing and slaying nntil compelled to 
halt from very weariness. 

Many colors were taken in that pur- 
suit, and two curious incidents are 
worthy of record: Quartermaster Hum- 
bert of the 2d Dragoons captured a 
standard, but was killed by three mus- 
ket-balls, seeing which the dragoon 
Fauveau leaped to the ground, rescued 
the prize, and carrying it to his colonel 
under a hail of shot, said modestly, "It 
was the Quartermaster Humbert who 
took this flag," for which he received 
the Cross the same day. 

The other instance was that of Colo- 
nel Doullembourg of the ist Dra- 
goons, who was unhorsed and momen- 
tarily captured, in the confusion his 
name appearing in the bulletin as 
killed. 

" It is not worth the trouble of altera- 
tion," said Berthierwhen he protested; 



and, oddly enough, the mistake was 
still further perpetuated after the Po- 
lish campaig-n ; for certain squares and 
streets of Paris being named after the 
officers who fell at Jena, a Rue Doul- 
lembourg came into existence, and 
again the colonel protested. 

" What ! " said Berthier, " would you 
have me give back to the Emperor an 
order so honorable to you? No; live 
in the Rue Doullembourg and establish 
your family there." 

Napoleon returned to Jena for the 
night, where he received the professors 
of the university, and rewarded the 
Saxon clergyman to whom he owed so 
much ; and there he composed the Fifth 
Bulletin, one of the most mendacious 
of his productions. It is also recorded 
that he crossed the battle-field and ad- 
ministered brandy with his own hands 
to many of the wounded. 



CHAPTER XXIIl. 



Brilliant Victories of Commodore Perry and General Jackson* 



fe I HB famous battle fought by Com- 
J I modore Perry on Lake Erie, 
resulting in a victory for the 
American Navy, ranks as one of the 
great naval achievements of the Nine- 
teenth Century. It had a decisive effect 
upon the struggle with Great Britain, 
then going on, and hastened the close 
of» the second war with the mother 
country. 

Perry's celebrated battle was fought 
September loth, 1813, and raised to a 
high pitch the spirits of the Americans, 
who were disheartened by repeated dis- 
asters. The British had six ships, with 
sixty- three guns. The Americans had 
nine ships, with fifty-four guns, and the 
American ships were much smaller 
than the English. At this time Perry, 
the American commander, was but 
twenty-six years of age. His flagship 
was the Lawrence. The ship's watch- 
word was the last charge of the Chesa- 
peake's dying commander — "Don't 
give up the ship." The battle was 
witnessed by thousands of people on 
shore. 

At first the advantage seemed to be 
with the English. Perry's flagship was 
riddled by English shot, her guns were 
dismounted and the battle seemed lost. 
At the supreme crisis Perry embarked 
in a small boat with some of his officers, 
and under the fire of many cannon 
passed to the Niagara, another ship of 
the fleet, of which he took command. 

After he had left the Lawrence she 
hauled down her flag and surrendered, 
852 



but the other American ships carried on 
the battle with such fierce impetuosity 
that the English battle-ship in turn sur- 
rendered, the Lawrence was retaken and 
all the English ships yielded with the 
exception of one, which took flight. 
The Americans pursued her, took her 
and came back with the entire British 
squadron. In the Capitol at Washing- 
ton is a historical picture, a copy of 
which is here inserted, showing Perry's 
famous exploit in passing from one 
ship to another under the fire of the 
enemy. 

The reader will be especially inter- 
ested in obtaining a detailed account of 
Perry's brilliant tactics in this famous 
sea-fight. 

Perry's squadron was lying at Put- 
in-Bay on the morning of the loth of 
September, when, at daylight, the ene- 
my's ships were discovered at the 
northwest from the masthead of the 
Lawrence. A signal was immediately 
made for all the vessels to get under 
way. The wind was light at the south- 
west, and there was no mode of obtain- 
ing the weather-gauge of the enemy, a 
very important measure with the pecu- 
liar armament of the largest of the 
American vessels, but by beating round 
some small islands that lay in the way. 

It being thought there was not suffi- 
cient time for this, though the boats 
were got ahead to tow, a signal was 
about to be made for the vessels to ware, 
and to pass to leeward of the islands, 
with an intention of giving the enemy 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 358 



this great advantage, when the wind 
shifted to southeast. By this change 
the American squadron was enabled to 
pass in the desired direction, and to 
gain the wind. 

When he perceived the American 
vessels clearing the land, or about lo 
A. M., the enemy hove to, in a line, 
with his ships' heads to the southward 
and westward. At this time the two 
squadrons were about three leagues 
asunder, the breeze being still at south- 
east, and sufficient to work with 

Change of Plans. 

After standing down until about a 
league from the English, where a better 
view was got of the manner in which 
the enemy had formed his line, the 
leading vessels of his own squadron be- 
ing within hail. Captain Perry com- 
municated a new order of attack. It 
had been expected that the Queen Char- 
lotte, the second of the English vessels, 
in regard to force, would be at the head 
of their line, and the Niagara had been 
destined to lead in, and to lie against 
her. Captain Perry having reserved for 
himself a commander's privilege of en- 
gaging the principal vessel of the oppos- 
ing squadron ; but, it now appearing 
that the anticipated arrangement had 
not been made, the plan w. s promptly 
altered. 

Captain Barclay had formed his line 
with the Chippeway, Mr. Campbell, 
armed with one gun on a pivot, in the 
van ; the Detroit, his own vessel, next ; 
and the Hunter, Lieutenant Bignal ; 
Queen Charlotte, Captain Finnis ; Lady 
Prevost, Lieutenant Commandant Bu- 
chan ; and the Little Belt astern, in the 
order named. To oppose this line, the 
Ariel, of four long twelves, was stationed 
^3 



in the van, and the Scorpion, of one 
long and one short gun on circles, next 
her. The Lawrence, Captain Perry, 
came next ; the two schooners just men- 
tioned keeping on her weather bow, 
Laving no quarters. The Caledonia, 
Lieutenant Turner, was the next astern, 
and the Niagara, Captain Elliot, was 
placed next to the Caledonia. 

These vessels were all up at the time, 
but the other light craft were more or 
less distant, each endeavoring to get 
into her berth. The order of battle 
for the remaining vessels directed the 
Tigress to fall in astern of the Niagara, 
the Somers next, and then the Porcu- 
pine and Trippe in the order named 

Array of English Ships. 

By this time the wind had got to be 
very light, but the leading vessels were 
all in their stations, and the remainder 
were all endeavoring to get in as fast as 
possible. The English vessels presented 
a very gallant array, and their appear- 
ance was beautiful and imposing. Their 
line was compact, with the heads of the 
vessels still to the southward and west- 
ward ; their ensigns were just opening 
to the air ; their vessels were freshly 
painted, and their canvas 'was new and 
perfect. The American line was more 
straggling. The order of battle re- 
quired them to form within half a 
cable's length of each other, but the 
schooners astern could not close with 
the vessels ahead, which sailed faster, 
and had more light canvas until some 
considerable time had elapsed. 

A few minutes before twelve, the De- 
troit threw a twenty-four-poimd shot 
at the Lawrence, then on her weather 
quarter, distance between one and two 
miles. Captain Perry now passed an 



354 VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 



order by trumpet, througli the vessels 
astern, for the line to close to the pre- 
scribed order ; and soon after the Scor- 
pion was hailed and directed to begin 
with her long gun. 

At this moment the American vessels 
in line were edging down upon the 
English, those in front being neces- 
sarily nearer to the enemy than those 
more astern, with the exception of the 
Ariel and Scorpion, which two schooners 
had been ordered to keep well to the 
windward of the Lawrence. 

Brisk Firing. 

Ai. the Detroit had an armament of 
long guns, Captain Barclay manifested 
his judgment in commencing the action 
in this manner ; and in a short time the 
firing between that ship, the Lawrence, 
and the two schooners at the head of 
the American line got to be very ani- 
mated. The Lawrence now showed a 
signal for the squadron to close with 
each vessel in her station, as previously 
designated. A few minutes later the 
vessels astern began to fire, and the 
action became general, but distant. 
The Lawrence, however, appeared to be 
the principal aim of the enemy, and 
before the firing had lasted any material 
time the Detroit, Hunter and Queen 
Charlotte were directing most of their 
efforts against her. 

The American brig endeavored to 
close, and did succeed in getting with- 
in reach of canister, though not without 
suffering materially, as she fanned down 
upon the enemy. At this time the 
support of the two schooners ahead, 
which were well commanded and fought, 
was of the greatest moment to her; for 
the vessels astern, though in the line, 
could be of little use in diverting the 



fire, on account of their positions and 
the distance. 

After the firing had lasted some time, 
the Niagara hailed the Caledonia, and 
directed the latter to make room for the 
former to pass ahead. Mr. Turner put 
his helm up in the most dashing man- 
ner, and continued to near the enemy, 
until he was closer to his line, perhaps, 
than the commanding vessel; keeping 
up as warm a fire as his small arma- 
ment would allow. The Niagara now 
became the vessel next astern of the 
Lawrence. 

The cannonade had the usual effect 
of deadening the wind, and for two 
hours there was very little air. During 
all this time, the weight of the enemy's 
fire was directed against the Lawrence ; 
the Queen Charlotte having filled, 
passed the Hunter and closed with the 
Detroit, where she kept up a destruc- 
tive cannonading on this devoted ves- 
sel. These united attacks dismantled 
the American brig, besides producing 
great slaughter on board her. 

Movements of Battleships. 

At the end of two hours and a half, 
agreeable to the report of Captain Perry, 
the enemy having filled, and the wind 
increasing, the two squadrons drew 
slowly ahead, the Lawrence necessarily 
falling astern and partially out of the 
combat. At this moment the Niagara 
passed to the southward and westward, 
a short distance to windward of the 
Lawrence, steering for the head of the 
enemy's line, and the Caledonia fol- 
lowed to leeward. 

The vessels astern had not been idle, 
but, by dint of sweeping and sailing, 
they had all got within reach of their 
guns, and had been gradually closing. 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 355 



though not in the prescribed order. 
The rear of the line would seem to have 
inclined down towards the enemy, 
bringing the Trippe, lyieutenant Hold- 
up, so near the Caledonia, that the lat- 
ter sent a boat to her for a supply of 
cartridges. 

Captain Perry, finding himself in a 
vessel that had been rendered nearly 
useless by the injuries she had received, 
and which was dropping out of the 
combat, got into his boat, and pulled 
after the Niagara, on board of which 
vessel he arrived at about half-past two. 
Soon after the colors of the Lawrence 
were hauled down, that vessel being 
literally a wreck. 

Gretting into Closer Action. 

Lfter a short consultation between 
Captains Perry and Elliott, the latter 
volunteered to take the boat of the for- 
mer, and to proceed and bring the small 
vessels astern, which were already 
briskly engaged, into still closer action. 
This proposal being accepted, Captain 
Elliott pulled down the line, passing 
within hail of all the small vessels 
astern, directing them to close within 
half-pistol shot of the enemy, and to 
throw in grape and canister, as soon as 
they could get the desired positions. 
He then repaired on board the Somers 
and took charge of that schooner in 
person. 

When the enemy saw the colors of 
the Lawrence come down, he confi- 
dently believed that he had gained the 
day. His men appeared over the bul- 
warks of the different vessels and gave 
three cheers. For a few minutes, in- 
deed, there appears to have been, as if 
by common consent, nearly a general 
cessation in the firing, during which j 



both parties were preparing for a des- 
perate and final effort. The wind had 
freshened and the position of the Niag- 
ara, which brig was now abeam of the 
leading English vessel, was command- 
ing; while the gun-vessels astern, in 
consequence of the increasing breeze, 
were enabled to close very fast. 

Rousing Cheers. 

At forty-five minutes past two, or 
when time had been given to the gun- 
vessels to receive the order mentioned, 
Captain Perry showed the signal from 
the Niagara, for close action, and im- 
mediately bore up, under his foresail, 
topsails, and topgallantsail . As the 
American vessels hoisted their answer- 
ing flags, this order was received with 
three cheers, and it was obeyed with 
alacrity and spirit. 

The enemy had attempted to ware 
round, to get fresh broadsides to bear, 
in doing which his line got into confu- 
sion, and the two ships for a short time 
were foul of each other, while the Lady 
Prevost had so far shifted her berth, as 
to be both to the westward and to the 
leeward of the Detroit. At this critical 
moment, the Niagara came steadily 
down, within half pistol-shot of the 
enemy, standing between the Chippe- 
way and Lady Prevost, on one side, and 
the Detroit, Queen Charlotte and Hun- 
ter on the other. In passing she poured 
in her broadsides, starboard and lar- 
board, ranging ahead of the ships, 
luffed athwart their bows, and continued 
delivering a close and deadly fire. 

The shrieks from the Detroit, pro- 
claimed that the tide of battle had 
turned. At the same moment, the gun- 
vessels and Caledonia were throwing in 
close discharges of grape and canister 




J 



PERRY PASSING IN AN OPEN BOAT THROUGH THE THICK OF THE FIGHT. 

356 



VICTORIES OB COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 



357 



astern. A conflict so fearfully close, 
and so deadly, was necessarily short. 
In fifteen or twenty minutes after the 
Niagara bore up, a hail was passed 
among the small vessels, to say that the 
enemy had struck, and an officer of the 
Queen Charlotte appeared on the taflf- 
rail of that ship, waving a white hand- 
kerchief, tied to a boarding-pike. 

Trying to Escape. 

As soon as the smoke cleared away 
the two squadrons were found partly 
intermingled. The Niagara lay w 
leeward of the Detroit, Queen Charlotte 
and Hunter ; and the Caledonia, with 
one or two of the gun-vessels, was 
between the latter and the Lady Pre- 
vost. On board the Niagara the signal 
for close action was still abroad, while 
the small vessels were sternly wearing 
their answering flags. The Little Belt 
and Chippeway were endeavoring to es- 
cape to leeward, but they were shortly 
after brought-to by the Scorpion and 
Trippe ; while the Lawrence was lying 
astern and to windward, with the Ameri- 
can colors again flying. The battle had 
commenced about noon, and it termin- 
ated at three, with the exception of a 
few shots fired at the two vessels that 
attempted to escape, which v/ere not 
overtaken until an hour later. 

In this decisive action, so far as their 
people were concerned, the two squad- 
rons suffered in nearly an equal degree, 
the manner in which the Lawrence was 
cut up being almost without an example 
in naval warfare. It is understood that 
when Captain Perry left her she had 
but one gun on her starboard side, or 
that on which she was engaged, which 
could be used ; and that gallant officer 
is said to have aided in firing it 



in person the last time it was dis- 
charged. 

Of her crew, 22 were killed and 6r 
were wounded, most of the latter se- 
verely. When Captain Perry left her, 
taking with him his own brother and 
six of his people, there remained on 
board but 14 sound men. The Niagara 
had 2 killed and 25 wounded ; or about 
one-fourth of all at quarters. This was 
the official report ; but, according to 
the statement of the surgeon, her loss 
Tras 5 killed and 27 wounded. 

Total Loss. 

The other vessels suffered relative] f> 
less. The total loss of the squadron 
was 27 killed and 96 wounded, or alto- 
gether, 123 men; of whom 12 were 
quarter-deck officers. More than a 
hundred men were unfit for duty 
among the different vessels, previous tc 
the action, cholera morbus and dysen- 
tery prevailing in the squadron. Cap 
tain Perry himself was laboring under 
debility, from a recent attack of the 
lake fever, and could hardly be said to 
be in proper condition for service when 
he met the enemy ; a circumstance that 
greatly enhances the estimate of his 
personal exertions on this memorable 
occasion. 

For two hours the weight of the 
enemy's fire had been thrown into the 
Lawrence, and the water being per' 
fectly smooth his long guns had com- 
mitted great havoc, before the carron- 
ades of the American vessels could be 
made available. For much of this 
period it is believed that the efforts of 
the enemy were little diverted, except 
by the fire of the two leading schooners, 
a gun of one of which (the Ariel) had 
early bursted, the two long guns of the 



358 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL [ACKSON. 



large brigs, and the two long guns of 
the Caledonia. 

Although the enemy undoubtedly 
suffered by this fire, it was not directed 
at a single object, as was the case with 
that of the English, who appeared to 
think that by destroying the American 
commanding vessel they would con- 
quer. It is true that carronades were 
used on both sides, at an earlier stage of 
the action than that mentioned, but 
there is good reason for thinking that 
they did but little execution for the 
first hour. When they did tell, the 
Lawrence — the vessel nearest to the 
enemy, if the Caledonia be excepted — 
necessarily became their object, and, by 
this time, the efficiency of her own bat- 
tery was much lessened. 

Shot Passed Through. 

As a consequence of these peculiar 
circumstances, her starboard bulwarks 
were nearly beaten in, and even her 
larboard were greatly injured, many of 
the enemy's heavy shot passing through 
both sides, while every gun was finally 
disabled in the batteries fought. Al- 
though much had been justly said of 
the manner in which the Bon Homme 
Richard and the Essex were injured, 
neither of those suffered, relatively, in 
a degree proportioned to the Lawrence. 

Distinguished as were the two former 
vessels for the indomitable resolution 
with which they withstood the destruc- 
tive fire directed against them, it did 
not surpass that manifested on board 
the latter ; and it ought to be mentioned 
that throughout the whole of this try- 
ing day her people, who had been so 
short a time acting together, manifested 
a steadiness and a discipline worthy of 
veterans. 



Although the Niagara suffered in a 
much less degrees, 27 men killed and 
wounded, in a ship's company that 
mustered little more than 100 souls at 
quarters, under ordinary circumstances 
would be thought a large proportion. 
Neither the Niagara nor any of the 
smaller vessels were injured in an un- 
usual manner in their hulls, spars and 
sails, the enemy having expended so 
much of his efforts against the Law- 
rence, and being so soon silenced when 
that brig and the gun-vessels got their 
ranking positions at the close of the 
conflict. 

# 

Heavy Casualties. 

The injuries sustained by the English 
were more divided, but were necessarily 
great. According to the official report 
of Captain Barclay, his vessels lost 41 
killed and 94 wounded, making a total 
of 135, including twelve officers, the 
precise number lost by the Americans. 
No report has been published in which 
the loss of the respective vessels was 
given ; but the Detroit had her first 
lieutenant killed, and her commander, 
Captain Barclay, with her purser, 
wounded. Captain Finnis, of the Queen 
Charlotte, was also slain, and her first 
lieutenant was wounded. 

The commanding officer and first 
lieutenant of the Lady Prevost were 
among the wounded, as were the com- 
manding officers of the Hunter and 
Chippeway. All the vessels were a 
good deal injured in their sails and 
hulls; the Queen Charlotte suffering 
most in proportion. Both the Detroit 
and Queen Charlotte rolled the masts 
out of them, at anchor at Put-in-Bay, 
in a gale of wind, two days after the 
action. 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 



359 



It is not easy to make a just compari- 
son between the forces of the hostile 
squadrons on this occasion. In certain 
situations the Americans would have 
been materially superior, while in others 
the enemy might possess the advantage 
in perhaps an equal degree. In the cir- 
cumstances under which the action was 
actually fought, the peculiar advant- 
ages and disadvantages were nearly 
equalized, the lightness of the wind 
preventing either of the two largest of 
the American vessels from profiting by 
its peculiar mode of efficiency, until 
quite near the close of the engagement, 
and particularly favoring the armament 
of the Detroit ; while the smoothness 
of the water rendered the light vessels 
of the Americans very destructive as 
soon as they could be got "vithin a 
proper range. 

Long Guns in Action. 

The Detroit has been represented on 
good authority, to have been both a 
heavier and stronger ship than either 
of the American brigs, and the Queen 
Charlotte proved to be a much finer 
vessel than had been expected; while 
the Lady Prevost was found to be a 
large, warlike schooner. It was, per- 
haps, unfortunate for the enemy, that 
the armaments of the two last were not 
available under the circumstances which 
rendered the Detroit so efficient, as it 
destroyed the unity of his efforts. 

In short, the battle for near half of 
its duration appears to have been fought, 
so far as efficiency was concerned, by 
the long guns of the two squadrons. 
This was particularly favorable to the 
Detroit and to the American gun-ves- 
sels ; while the latter fought under the 
advantages of smooth water and the 



disadvantages of having uo quarters. 
The sides of the Detroit, which were 
unusually stout, were filled with shot 
that did not penetrate. 

Brave Officers. 

Captain Perry, in his report of the 
action, eulogized the conduct of his 
second in command, Captain Elliott ; 
that of Mr. Turner, who commanded 
the Caledonia ; and that of the officers 
of his own vessel. He also commended 
the officers of the Niagara, Mr. Packett 
of the Ariel, and Mr. Champlin of the 
Scorpion. It is now believed that the 
omission of the names of the com- 
manders of the gun-vessels astern, was 
accidental. It would seem that these 
vessels, in general, were conducted with 
great gallantry. 

Towards the close of i-iie action, 
indeed, the Caledonia, and some of the 
gun-vessels, would appear to have been 
handled with a boldness, considering 
their total want of quarters, bordering 
on temerity. They are known to have 
been within hail of the enemy, at the 
moment he struck, and to have been 
hailed by him. The grape and canister 
thrown by the Niagara and the schoon- 
ers, during the last ten minutes of the 
battle, and which missed the enemy, 
rattled through the spars of the friendly 
vessels, as they lay opposite to each 
other, raking the English ahead and 
astern. 

Captain Perry was criticised at the 
time for the manner in which he had 
brought his squadron into action, it 
being thought he should have waited 
until his line was more compactly 
formed, and his small vessels could 
have closed. It has been said that "an 
officer seldom went into action worse, 



560 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAI, JACKSO^i. 



or got out of it better." Truth is too 
often made the sacrifice of antithesis. 
The mode of attack appears to have 
been deemed by the enemy judicious, 
an opinion that speaks in its favor. 
The lightness of the wind, in edging 
down, was the only circumstance that 
was particularly adverse to the Ameri- 
can vessels, but its total failure could 
not have been readily foreseen. 

Clever Tactics. 

The shortness of the distances on the 
lake rendered escape so easy, when an 
officer was disposed to avoid a battle, 
that no commander, who desired an 
action, would have been pardonable 
for permitting a delay on such a plea. 
The line of battle was highly judicious, 
the manner in which the Lawrence was 
supported by the Ariel and Scorpion 
being simple and ingenious. 

By steering for the head of the ene- 
my's line the latter was prevented from 
gaining the wind by tacking, and when 
Captain Elliott imitated this manoeuvre 
in the Niagara, the American squadron 
had a very commanding position, of 
which Captain Perry promptly availed 
himself. In a word, the American 
commander appears to have laid his 
plan with skill and judgment, and in 
all in which it was frustrated it would 
seem to have been the effect of accident. 
His end was fully obtained and resulted 
in a triumph. 

The British vessels appear to have 
been gallantly fought, and were sur- 
Tendered only when the battle was 
hopelessly lost. The fall of their differ- 
ent commanders was materially against 
them, though it is not probable the day 
could have been recovered after the 
Niagara gained the head of their line 



and the gun vessels had closed. If tm 
enemy made an error it was in not 
tacking when he attempted to ware, 
but it is quite probable that the condi- 
tion of his vessels did not admit of the 
former manoeuvre. 

There was an instant when the enemy 
believed himself the conqueror, and a 
few minutes even, when the Americans 
doubted ; but the latter never despaired ; 
a moment sufficed to change their feel- 
ings, teaching the successful the fickle- 
ness of fortune, and admonishing the 
depressed of the virtue of perseverance. 

For his conduct in this battle, Cap- 
tain Perry received a gold medal from 
Congress. Captain Elliott also re- 
ceived a gold medal. Rewards were 
bestowed on the officers and men gen- 
erally, and the nation has long consid- 
ered thi^ ' action one of its proudest 
achievements on the water. 

Grlory for Our Navy. 

It is not too much to say that this 
renowned victory on Lake Erie has 
done more than any other one event to 
give that high prestige to the Americaa 
Navy which has been accorded to it for 
so long a time. Every great sea battle 
must be fought, not merely with guns 
and powder, but with brains. There 
must be planning, strategy, manoeu- 
vring, sometimes swift and complicatedj 
and all th:3 is the work of the head. 
Next comes the bravery, the fiery dash, 
that turns the onset into victory. 

It is not a little remarkable that the 
American nation, which, so far as com- 
merce is concerned, has never claimed 
to be mistress of the seas, should have 
had a navy whose exploits from first to 
last have been the surprise and wonder 
of the world. 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 



361 



During the year following the great 
battle of Lake Erie was fought one of 
the most important land and naval bat- 
tles of the century. 

At the western end of Jamaica is 
Negril Bay, a wide, safe and convenient 
anchorage. There, on the 24tli of No- 
vember, 1 8 14, was assembled one of 
the most imposing and ejEficient com- 
bined naval and military forces that 
Great Britain has ever sent across the 
Atlantic. More than fifty ships were 
there, most of them men-of-war, and 
the remainder transports. The men- 
of-war included many vessels of the 
largest size, and their commanders 
numbered amongst them the most re- 
nowned and trusted English officers. 

Renowned Commanders. 

Sir Alexander Cochrane' s flag was 
Loisted on the 80-gun Tonnant, and he 
had with him Rear-Admiral Malcolm 
in the 74, Royal Oak. Sir Thomas Hardy 
— Nelson's Hardy — was in the Ramilis, 
and Sir Thomas Trobridge was in the Ar- 
mide. Many others there were, scarcely 
less well known to fame and fresh from 
the great deeds which had given to 
England the undisputed sovereignty of 
the seas. The decks of the fleet were 
crowded with soldiers. The 4th, 44th, 
85th, and the 21st Regiments, with a 
proportion of artillery and sappers, had 
come from North America, where they 
had fought the battle of Bladensburg, 
burned the public buildings of Wash- 
ington, and lost in action their general 
— the gallant Ross — during the past 
summer. 

These had just been joined by the 
93rd Highlanders, six companies of 
the 95th Rifles, two West India Regi- 
ments, two squadrons of the 14th Dra- 



goons (dismounted), with detachments 
of artillery and engineers, and recruits 
for the regiments which had been al- 
ready campaigning in America. The 
whole probably formed an army of 
about 6,000 men, though of them i ■ 
could not be said that above 4,400 were 
troops on which a general could thor 
oughly depend, as the two West India 
Regiments, being composed of negroes, 
were not completely trustworthy, par- 
ticularly if they were to be called upon 
to <^ndure much exposure to cold in 
coming service. 

Formidable Fleet. 

Thiir leader was Major-General 
Keane, a young and dashing officer, 
who had been sent out from England 
to be second in command to General 
Ross, and who did not know till he 
reached Madeira on his voyage that, 
by Ross's lamented death, he had no 
senior. Other forces were also on their 
way, which would eventually join the 
great armament now in Negril Bay. A 
fleet from Bordeaux was still on the 
ocean, the naval squadron of Captain 
Percy was to effect a junction from Pen- 
sacola, and more ships were to come 
from England conveying a commander- 
in-chief 

The object with which so much war- 
like power had been collected had long 
been studiously kept secret, but at last 
it was known that a descent on Ivouis- 
iana was intended, and that the first 
operation would be the capture of New 
Orleans. It was thought that the Gov- ' 
ernment of the United States would be 
taken by surprise, that little or no re- 
sistance would be met with, and that 
the charges of the expedition would be 
more than covered by the large booty 



362 VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 



in cotton, sugar and other products 
which had not been able to leave the 
country during the course of the war 
while the seas were watched by English 
cruisers. 

There was no longer delay at the 
place of rendezvous, and the great fleet 
got under weigh on the 26th November. 
Confidence was in every heart, and no 
forebodings of disaster clouded the an- 
ticipations of success which, as by sec- 
ond nature, came to soldiers and sailors 
accustomed to victory. 

Loyalty was Doubtfai. 

New Orleans is built on the east 
bank of the Mississippi, the "father of 
waters," about eighty miles from its 
mouth. In 1814 its inhabitants num- 
bered from 20,000 to 30,000, of whom 
the majority were French Creoles, while 
the remainder were Spaniards and 
Americans, besides a floating multitude 
of merchants, sailors and others who 
had been detained in the city and de- 
barred from their usual avocations by 
the war. It was doubtful whether this 
population was loyal to the American 
Republic, of which it had only for a 
few years formed a part, and, indeed, if 
the defense of the town had fallen into 
less vigorous hands than it did, it is 
more than likely that serious disaffec- 
tion might have showed itself. 

The mighty flood of the Mississippi, 
bearing down with it a vast accumula- 
tion of detritus, had formed a great 
delta, and the waters themselves found 
their way to the Gulf of Mexico 
through many channels. Its main out- 
let was, however, the only one naviga- 
ble for ships of any size, and this had 
at its mouth a constantly shifting bar, 
which was impassable for any craft 



drawing over sixteen or seventeen feet 
of water. Besides the natural difficul- 
ties of the entrance to the river, it was 
further defended by a fort, strong in it- 
self and almost impregnable by its posi- 
tion in the midst of impervious swamps. 
Even supposing that an enemy should 
be able to pass the bar and the first fort, 
he would find that when he had as- 
cended the river about sixty miles two 
other strong forts presented themselves, 
whose cross fire swept the channel, at 
a point, too, where the river makes a 
bend, and the sailing ships of the dav 
had to wait for a change of wind t 
ensure their further progress. 

No Place for Landing. 

The banks of the river were composed 
of slimy morasses, rank with semi-tro- 
pical vegetation and intersected by 
bayous, or creeks, utterly impracticable 
for landing or for the march and man- 
oeuvring of troops. To the east of the 
swampy delta formed by the great river, 
a shallow sheet of open water stretched 
inland from the Gulf of Mexico, and 
was only divided from the Mississippi 
at its further extremity by a narrow 
neck of comparatively firm land, and on 
this neck was situated the town of New 
Orleans. The open water near the 
gulf was known as Lake Borgne, and, 
where it widened out eastward of the 
city, as Lake Pontchartrain. 

The entire width of the neck of land 
between Lake Pontchartrain and the 
river might vary from eight to ten 
miles, but of this about two-thirds was 
reed-grown morass, while the remainder 
was occupied by cotton and sugar plan- 
tations, separated by strong railings 
and drained by numerous deep ditches 
or canals. The whole at certain seasons 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 363 



oi the year was below the level of the 
river, and was protected from inunda- 
tion by high artificial dykes, or ram- 
parts, called in L/Ouisiana levees. 

"Old Hickory," 

When the designs of the British ar- 
mament became apparent, Major-Gen- 
eral Jackson, of the Unite States army, 
an officer who had greatly distinguished 
himseli in Indian wars, was entrusted 
with supreme command at the threat- 
ened point, and arrived at New Orleans 
on the 2d of December. As a man who 
made his mark in history, and who 
served his country well at a great crisis 
in her fortunes, his personal description 
is of peculiar interest: — " A tall, gaunt 
man, of very erect carriage, with a 
countenance full of stern decision and 
fearless energy, but furrowed with care 
and anxiety. His complexion was sal- 
low and unhealthy, his hair was iron 
grey, and his body thin and emaciated, 
like that of one who had just recovered 
from a lingering and painful illness. 
But the fierce glare of his bright and 
hawk-like eye betrayed a soul and spirit 
which triumphed over all the infirmi- 
ties of the body. His dress was simple 
and nearly threadbare. A small leather 
cap protected his head, and a short 
Spanish blue cloak his body, whilst his 
feet and legs were encased in high dra- 
goon boots, long ignorant of polish or 
blacking, which reached to the knees. 
In age he appeared to have passed about 
forty-five winters." 

Immediately on his arrival at New 
Orleans, General Jackson began making 
every arrangement for the defence of 
the town, inspecting and improving 
the river forts, reconnoitring the shores 
of Lake Borgne and Lake Pontchar- 



train, fortifying and obstructing the 
bayous which gave a waterway to the 
near neighborhood of the town, and 
stimulating and encouraging the peo- 
ple. In truth he had apparently no 
easy task before him. 

We have seen how mighty was the 
force arrayed against him, which was 
even now lying off the coast ready to 
advance in a wave of invasion. To 
oppose it he had at his immediate dis- 
posal only two newly-raised regiments 
of regular troops, a battalion of uni- 
formed volunteers, two badly equipped 
and imperfectly-disciplined regiments 
of State militia — some of whose pri- 
vates were armed with rifles, some with 
muskets, some with flowling-pieces, 
some not armed at all — and a battalion 
of free men of color, the whole amount- 
ing to between 2,000 and 3,000 fighting- 
men. Two small vessels of war lay in 
the river, but these were, so far, un- 
manned. There were also six gun- 
boats on Lake Pontchartrain. Commo- 
dore Patterson was the senior naval 
officer, and he had few subordinates. 

Hurrying to the Rescue. 
Reinforcemencs were, however, on 
their way, and were strenuously push- 
ing forward in defiance of the incle- 
ment season, swollen streams, nearly 
impassable roads, and scant supply of 
food and forage. General Coffee, with 
nearly 3,000 men, was coming from 
Pensacola. General Carroll was bring- 
ing a volunteer force from Tennessee, 
and Generals Thomas and Adair, at the 
head of 2,000 Kentuckians, were also 
on their way down the Mississippi to 
join in the defence of Kentucky's sister 
State. Such an army as — even when 
all should be assembled — General Jack- 



364 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERA^ jACKSON. 



son was to command would, to all seem- 
ing, have little chance in a ranged field 
against the highly-disciplined soldiery 
of England; but it had, for its greatest 
and most reliable advantage, the occu- 
pation of a position in the highest de- 
gree dilBficult of approach, and, when 
reached, capable by its nature of effec- 
tual resistance. 

Fleet All There. 

On December 8th the leading ships 
of the English fleet, which had left Ne- 
gril Bay on November 26th, anchored 
off the Chandeleur Islands, which stud 
the gulf opposite to the entrance of 
Lake Borgne; and by the 12th the 
whole of the men-of-war and troopships 
had arrived. It had been recognized 
that to advance against New Orleans 
by the channel of the Mississippi was 
a task too difiicult to be attempted, 
and Sir Alexander Cochrane and Gen- 
eral Keane had determined to effect a 
landing on the shore of Lake Pont- 
chartrain, and hoped, by pushing on at 
once, to be able to take possession of 
the town before effectual preparation 
could be made for its defence. 

It has been said that Lake Borgne 
and Lake Pontchartrain were shallow; 
indeed, their depth varied from six to 
twelve feet. The troops were, there- 
fore, transferred from the larger into 
the lighter vessels, and on the 13th 
were prepared to enter upon the transit 
of the land-locked waters. They had 
not proceeded far, however, when it be- 
came apparent that the American gun- 
boats which occupied the lake were 
prepared to offer resistance to the move- 
ment, andj until that resistance could 
be removed, no disembarkation cot' Id 
be attempted 



The gunboats, with their light 
draught of water, could bid defiance to 
even the lightest vessels of the English 
fleet, which could not float where they 
sailed- They could only be reached 
by ship's launches and barges rowed by 
seamen, and a flotilla combined under 
Captain Luckier of the Navy was at 
once prepared for the enterprise. The 
boats pushed off, and by noon came in 
sight of the foe, who would willingly 
have retreated and given their attackers 
long and weary toil in their approach, 
but that, the morning breeze having 
died away, they were compelled per- 
force to fight at anchor in line moored 
fore and aft. Captain Lockier resolved 
to refresh his men before he commenced 
the action, and dropping his grapnels 
just out of reach of the enemy's guns, 
allowed his crews to eat their dinner. 

Brilliant Fighting. 

After an hour's repose the boats again 
got ready to advance, and, with a hearty 
cheer, they moved steadily in a long 
line. Then began one of those brilliant 
boat actions in which some of the best 
qualities of the English sailors so often 
showed themselves. The American 
guns opened, and a hail of balls was 
showered on Captain Lockier' s flotilla. 
One or two boats were sunk, others 
disabled, and many men were killed 
and wounded. But the English car- 
ronades returned the fier, and, as the 
determined, stalwart rowers gradually 
closed with the Americans, the marines 
were able to open a deadly discharge 
of musketry. 

A last powerful effort, the gunboats 
were reached, and, cutlass in hand, the 
bluejackets sprang up their sides. The 
resistance was stern and unyielding 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAX* JACKSON. 



Z6t> 



worthy of the American Republic. 
Captain lyockier received several severe 
wounds, but, fighting from stem to 
stern, the boarders at length overpow- 
ered their enemy, the " Stars and 
Stripes" was hauled down, and on 
every vessel the English flag was ho^'st- 
ed in its place. 

A Rough Journey. 

On the waterway of the lakes there 
was now no longer any resistance, and 
again the light vessels, to which the 
troops had been transferred, essayed to 
pass over it. But the depth beneath 
the keels became less and less, and even 
the lightest craft one after another stuck 
fast. The boats were of necessity 
hoist id out, and the soldiers, packed 
tigh'dy in them, cramped in one posi- 
tion, began a miserable transit of thirty 
irlles to Pine Island — a barren spot 
vvhere all were to be concentrated be- 
fore further operations were attempted. 

No boat, heavily laden as all were, 
could cover the long distance in less 
than ten hours, and, besides the discom- 
fort to the men, inseparable from such 
long confinement, matters were made 
infinitely worse by a change in the 
weather. A heavy rain began, to which 
a cloak formed no protection, and such 
as is only seen in semi-tropical coun- 
tries. 

The operation began on the i6th, 
and, with all the diligence and con- 
tinued exertion of which officers and 
men, soldiers and sailors, were capable, 
it was not finished until the 2ist. By 
day and night for these days boats were 
being pulled from the fleet to the island 
and from the island to the fleet. The 
strain upon the sailors was terrific, and 
*^any of them were almost without ces- 



sation at the oar. Not only had they 
to support hunger, fatigue and sleepless 
nights, but the constant changes of 
temperature aggravated the hardships. 
Drenching rain by day alternated with 
severe frosts by night, and tried to the 
uttermost the endurance of all. Nor 
was the army, as it landed in successive 
detachments on Pine Island, in a better 
plight. Bivouacked on a barren, swampy 
spot, which did not even produce fuel 
for camp fires, the clothes which had 
been saturated with rain by day and 
congealed into hard and deadly chilling 
husks by night, with no supply of food 
but salt meat, biscuit, and a little rum 
provided from the fleet, soldiers have 
seldom been exposed to more severe 
trials of their fortitude. 

British Fortitude. 

But, in spite of all, no complaints or 
murmurings rose from the expedition. 
The miseries of the present were for- 
gotten in the high hopes of the imme- 
diate future, and this confidence did 
not arise alone from trust in their own 
strength, but deserters from the enemy 
related the alarm that existed in New 
Orleans, assured the invaders that not 
more than 5,000 men were in arms 
against them, that many of the city's 
inhabitants were ready to join them 
when they appeared, and that conquest, 
speedy and bloodless, was within their 
grasp. 

Meanwhile, in New Orlean ; itself. 
General Jackson had been meeting 
difficulties, working to restore confi-| 
dence, and providing for the necessities 
of the military situation with all the 
energy of his nature. The news of the 
disaster to the American gunboats had 
filled the people with alarm. Rumors 



see 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE tERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 



of treason began to spread, an insur- 
rection of the slaves was dreaded, the 
armed ships in the river were still un- 
manned, and the expected reinforce- 
ments had not arrived. A desperate 
situation demanded the strongest and 
most unusual measures. Jackson did 
not hesitate to adopt them, and assumed 
the great responsibility of proclaiming 
martial law, so that he could wield the 
whole resources of the town, and direct 
them unimpaired by faction against his 
foe. 

Expresses were sent to the approach- 
ing additions to his strength, urging 
them to increase their efforts to push 
forward. The two war vessels — the 
Carolina and Louisiana — whose possi- 
ble importance as factors in the ap- 
proaching struggle was recognized, 
were manned and prepared for service ; 
and even a lawless semi-piraticai band 
of smugglers was forgiven its crime, 
taken into the service of the Republic, 
and organized into two companies of 
artillerymen. So great, however, was 
the lack of war munitions that even 
the flints of these privateers' pistols were 
received from them as a precious prize, 
and were forthwith fitted to muskets. 

Oompleting Preparations. 

The whole of the English field army 
was assembled on Pine Island on the 
2 1st of December, but having been so 
long on board ship, and its various 
corps having been gathered from many 
different points, it became necessary, 
before further advance was made, to 
form it in brigades, to allot to each 
brigade a proportion of departmental 
staff— such as commissaries, medical 
attendants, etc. — and to establish depots 
of provisions and military stores. 



In completing these arrangements 
the whole of the 22d was passed, and it 
was not till the morning of the 23d 
that General Keane's advanced guard 
could start for its descent on the main- 
land. This advanced guard was made 
up of the 4th, the 85th Light Infantry, 
and the six companies of the 95th 
Rifles. To it were attached a party of 
rocket-men and two light three-pounder 
field-pieces. The whole was under the 
command of Colonel Thornton, 85th. 

Short of Transports. 

The main body of the force was di- 
vided into two brigades — the first com- 
posed of the 2 1st, 44th, and one West 
India regiment, with a proportion of 
artillery and rockets, under Colonel 
Brook ; and the second, containing the 
93d and the other West India regiment, 
under Colonel Hamilton, also provided 
with rockets and field-guns. The dis- 
mounted dragoons remained as a per- 
sonal bodyguard to the general until 
they could be provided with horses. 

It was intended that the descent of 
the army on the mainland should take 
place on the bank of the Bayou Bienvenu 
—a long creek which ran up from Lake 
Pontchartrain to within a short distance 
of New Orleans through an extensive 
morass. Every boat that could be sent 
from the fleet was to be used for the 
service, but not more could be provided 
than were sufficient to transport a third 
of the army at one time. 

The undertaking was therefore most 
hazardous, as, if the troops were placed 
in proximity to the enemy in successive 
divisions at long intervals of time, each 
might be cut to pieces in detail. Neither 
leaders nor rank and file were, however, 
men to be deterred even by excessive 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAI, JACKSON. 



367 



risks, and, as has been said, they had 
the assurance of deserters that great 
resistance was not to be anticipated. 
Colonel Thornton's advanced guard 
was therefore embarked. Many miles 
had to be traversed, and again the sol- 
diers were exposed to long hours of 
confinement in a cramped position ; 
again the heavy rain of the day was 
succeeded at sundown by a bitter 
frost. 

Nor could they proceed after dark 
had set in, and, during the long weary 
hours of night, the boats lay in silence 
off their landing-place. By nine o'clock 
on the following morning, however, the 
landing was effected, and with limbs 
stiffened and almost powerless, with 
little available food to restore exhausted 
strength, i, 600 men stood at last upon 
the enemy's shore. 

In a Wilderness. 
Wild and savage was the scene where 
the little band found itself. A scarcely 
distinguishable track followed the bank 
of the bayou. On either side was one 
huge marsh, covered with tall reeds. 
No house or vestige of human life was 
to be seen, and but few trees broke the 
monotony of the dreary waste. For- 
bidding as was the spot, and ill-adapted 
for defence in case of attack, it might 
have possibly been supposed that Gen- 
eral Keane, who accompanied the ad- 
vanced guard, would have here re- 
mained in concealment till the boats, 
which had returned to Pine Island, had 
brought the remainder of his force ; 
but he judged it best to push on into 
more open country, influenced by the 
hope of striking a swift and unexpected 
blow, and by his fairly well-founded 
doubts whether even now his enemy's 



scouts might not now be hovering round 
him. 

The advance was formed, and, after 
several hours' march, delayed by the 
difficulties of the marshy road, by the 
numerous streams and ditches that had 
to be crossed, and by the fetid miasma 
that filled the air, the track began to 
issue from the morass, there were wider 
and wider spots of firm ground, and 
some groves of orange trees presented 
themselves. 

The Advance Discovered. 

It was evident that human habitations 
must be near, and increased caution 
and regularity became necessary. At 
last two or three farm houses appeared. 
The advanced companies rushed for- 
ward at the double and surrounded 
them, securing the inmates as prisoners. 
There was a moment of carelessness, 
however, and one man contrived to 
effect his escape. Now all further hope 
of secrecy had to be abandoned. Gen- 
eral Keane knew that the rumor of his 
landing would spread with lightning 
speed, and all that was left to him was 
to act with determination, and make 
the appearance of his force as formid- 
able as possible. 

The order of march was re-formed so 
that, moving upon a wide front, the 
three battalions had the semblance of 
twice their real strength, and the pace 
was quickened in order to gain a 
good military position before an enemy's 
force could show itself Onward they 
pressed, till they found themselves close 
to the bank of the mighty Mississippi 
and wheeling to the right, they were on 
the main road leading to New Orleans. 

They faced towards the city on a 
narrow plain, about a mile in width. 



368 VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAI. JACKSON. 



with the river on their left, nid the 
marsh which they had quitted on their 
right. A spot of comparative safety 
had been reached, the little column 
halted, piled arms, and its bivouac was 
formed. It was late in the afternoon 
before the moment of repose came, but 
the soldiers prepared to make the most 
of it; outposts were placed to secure 
them from surprise, foraging parties 
collected food, and fires were lighted. 

The evening passed with one slight 
alarm, caused by a few horsemen who 
hovered near the pickets, and darkness 
began to set in. In the twilight a 
vessel was seen dropping down the cur- 
rent, and roused curiosity among those 
who had not stretched themselves by 
the fires to seek much-needed sleep. It 
was thought that she might be an Eng- 
lish ship, which had managed to pass 
the forts at the mouth of the river. 
She showed no colors, but leasurely 
and silently she dropped her anchor 
abreast of the camp and furled her sails* 
To satisfy doubt she was repeatedly 
hailed, but no answer was returned. 
A feeling of uneasiness began to spread, 
and several musket shots were fired at 
her, but still reply came not from her 
dimly-seen bulk. 

Roar of Guns. 

Suddenly she swung her broadside 
toward the bank, and a commanding 
voice was heard to cry, "Give them 
this for the honor of America.-' The 
words were instantly followed by the 
flash and roar of guns, and a deadly 
shower of grape swept through the 
English bivouac. The light artillery 
which had accompanied General 
Keane's advance guard was helpless 
against so powerful an adversary, and 



nothing could be done but to withdraw 
the exposed force behind the shelter of 
the high levee. The fires were left 
burning, and, in the pitch-dark night, 
those who were uninjured were forced 
to cower low while the continued storm 
of grape whistled over their heads, and 
they could hear the shrieks and groans 
of their wretched comrades who had 
been wounded by the first discharge. 

Blaze of Musketry. 

Thus they lay for more than an hour, 
when a spatting fire of musketry was 
heard from the pickets which had been 
able to hold their position. Whether 
this fire was only the sign of slight 
skirmishing at the outposts, or whether 
it foreboded a serious attack, was for 
some minutes doubtful, but a fierce yell 
of exultation was heard, the blackness 
of night was lighted by a blaze of mus- 
ketry fire breaking out in semi-circle 
in front of the position, and the cer- 
tainty came that the enemy were upon 
the advance guard in overpowering 
numbers. 

The situation seemed almost des- 
perate. Retreat was impossible, and 
the only alternatives were co surrender 
or to beat back the assailants. General 
Keane and his followers were not the 
men to surrender, and at once assumed 
the bolder course. The 85th and 95th 
moved rapidly to support the pickets, 
while the 4th were formed as a reserve 
in the rear of the encampment. In the 
struggle that followed there was no 
opening for tactics, none for the super- 
vision and direction of a general, or 
even of the colonels of battalions. 

The darkness was so intense that all 
order, all discipline were lost. Each 
man hurled himself direct at the flashes 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 



369 



jf musketry ; if twenty or thirty united 
for a moment under an ofl&cer, it was 
only to plunge into the enemy's ranks 
and to engage in a hand-to-hand con- 
flict, bayonet against bayonet, sword 
against sword. In the dire confusion 
of the bloody melee it soon became im- 
possible to distinguish friend from foe. 

Americans Give Way. 

The British field-artillery dared not 
fire for fear of sweeping away Ameri- 
cans and Englishmen by the same dis- 
charge. Prisoners were taken on both 
sides, and often released at once by the 
sudden rush of assistance. As both 
armies spoke the same tongue a chal- 
lenge was or no avail, and till the 
deadly thrust or shot came no man 
could be certain who stood in front of 
Vim. 

In the nature of Aings such fighting 
could not be of long continuance. The 
Americans, astonished by the vigor of 
the assault, gave way, and were fol- 
lowed up for some distance ; but the 
English officers strove to rally their 
men, and to make them fall back to 
their first position; and soon all but 
those who had fallen were re-formed 
and concentrated. The Americans had 
been repulsed on all sides, but the fight 
had cost the English dearly, as, includ- 
ing the loss from the fire of the ship, 
46 were killed and 167 wounded, be- 
sides 64 taken prisoners. 

The miserable night wore on, but 
with the morning's dawn there came a 
renewal of the inglorious peril. The 
schooner whose fire had been so dis- 
astrous on the preceding evening still 
lay off in the river, and had now been 
joined by another vessel. They were 
the Carolina and Louisiana- Safe from 
24 



any retaliation, their guns covered the 
shore and effectually precluded any 
movement of the English, who were 
obliged — hungry, cold and wearied — to 
seek shelter under the levee from the 
shower of projectiles which swept the 
plain. 

But meanwhile the rest of the army 
was landing, andhasteningto join their 
comrades. The roar of the cannon had 
been heard far over the waters of Lake 
Pontchartrain, and had added energy 
to the strong arms that were pulling 
the boats. By nightfall on the 23rd the 
two brigades had both arrived on the 
scene of battle, and had taken up their 
ground between the morass and the 
river, but throwing back their left, so 
as to avoid the fire of the ships. 

The Brave Defenders. 

The advanced guard could at last be 
extricated from the trap into which it 
had fallen, and the night of the 24th 
was passed in quiet and in disheartened 
speculation whether the advance could 
be resumed or not. The responsibility 
of decision was, however, removed from 
General Keane by the unexpected ar- 
rival on the morning of the 25th of Sir 
Edward Pakenham and General Gibbs, 
who had been sent from England as 
first and second in command. 

Let us see what had been the course 
of affairs in New Orleans while the 
events just related were occurring. At 
the time that the English army was 
concentrating at Pine Island the de- 
fence of the city still depended alone 
on the small, half-organized force which 
General Jackson had found under his 
hand on his first arrival. But on the 
2 1st the long-expected reinforcements 
began to pour in. General Coffee — the 



3T0 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 



numbers of his following terribly re- 
duced by the toils of an unprecedentedly 
rapid march — came at the head of 
mounted Tennessee sharpshooters, hun- 
ters and pioneers from their youth. 
Colonel Hinds brought the Mississippi 
Dragoons. On the 2 2d General Car- 
roll's flotilla arrived with a further 
body of Tennesseeans, and, what was 
almost moie important, a supply of 
muskets. 

Costly Delay. 

The different corps were not yet, 
however, actually united in one body, 
and when the sudden report came that 
General Keane had actually landed, 
there was no military cohesion among 
them. If the English advanced guard 
had pushed at once on the city, instead 
of bivouacking during the afternoon of 
the 23d, they might possibly have en- 
countered no combined resistance, and 
have overthrown the Americans in de- 
tachments. But Keane' s halt, however 
much it may possibly be justified, gave 
Jackscn the opportunity he required, 
and enabled him to put all his men in 
line. The Carolina and Louisiana were 
sent down the river, with what result 
we have seen. The land troops were 
hurried to meet the enemy in the field, 
and the bitter struggle on the night of 
the 23d took place. 

When Sir Edward Pakenham took 
over the command of the English army 
he found himself in as unsatisfactory a 
position as could well fall to the lot of 
any general. He found himself com- 
mitted to a course of action which he 
had not initiated, and of which possibly 
he did not approve. He found his force 
in a cramped position, which offered no 
scope for the operations of highly trained 



and disciplined soldiers, and he learned 
that its advanced guard had sufiered, if 
not a defeat, at least a very serious 
check. If the end of the campaign was 
failure, he certainly should not be laden 
with all the blame. Carefully he re- 
connoitred the situation, and carefully 
he considered the state of affairs. 

It was evident that no advance could 
be made as long as the Carolina and 
Louisiana were able to pour forth tlieir 
murderous fire, and the night of the 
25th was employed in erecting on the 
levee batteries armed with heavy ship- 
guns sent from the fleet. When these 
opened with red-hot shot on the morn- 
ing of the 26th, the doom of the Caro- 
lina was sealed, her crew escaped in 
their boats, and she blew up. The 
Louisiana effected her escape while her 
consort was the sole object of the Eng- 
lish artillery. Now that the river was 
thus cleared, and the left flank of his 
force was no longer exposed to destruc- 
tion if it moved forward on tiie road to 
New Orleans, Pakenham made hi^ dis- 
positions for decisive advance. 

Plan of Battle. 

He reorganized his army, dividing it 
into two columns. That on the right 
— consisting of the 4th, 21st, 44th, and 
one West India Regiment — he placed 
under command of General Gibbs ; the 
other — comprising the 95th, 85th, 93d, 
and the other West India regiment, 
with all the available field-artillery, 
now increased to ten guns — remained 
under General Keane, and was to take 
the left of the line, while the dragoons, 
few of whom were yet mounted, fur- 
nished the guards to hospitals and stores. 

But there was still much to do. Heavy 
guns, stores, and ammunition had to be 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY ANb GENERAL JACKSON. 



371 



brought from the distant fleet, the 
wounded had to be disposed of, and the 
numberless requirements of provision 
and protection for an army in the field 
had to be attended to. For two days 
the English lay perforce inactive, 
though their outposts were exposed to 
constant harassing and deadly attack 
from the American sharpshooters and 
partisans. 

In European war, by tacit conven- 
tion, pickets and sentries confined them- 
selves to the duties of watchfulness 
alone ; but the riflemen of America saw 
in every enemy's soldier a man to be 
killed at any time, and they stalked in- 
dividuals as they would have stalked 
deer in their own backwoods, slaying 
and wounding many, and causing anx- 
iety by the never-ceasing straggling fire. 

Begins to March. 

A.t length all was ready for the long- 
delayed advance, and on the bright, 
frosty morning of the 28th the army 
began its march. Confidence in a new 
commander of high reputation had re- 
stored spirits to the men ; cold, wet, 
hunger, and broken rest were forgotten, 
and as the enemy's advanced corps fell 
back before them, hopes of conquest 
were renewed. Four or five miles were 
traversed without opposition. On the 
dead flat of the plain nothing could be 
seen far in advance of the columns, and 
they had no cavalry to scout in front 
and say what lay in their path. 

Suddenly, where a few houses stood 
at a turning in the road, the leading 
files came iu view of the foe's position. 
In their front was a canal, extending 
from the morass on their left towards 
the river on their right. Formidable 
breastworks had been thrown up, pow- 



erful batteries erected, while the Louisi- 
ana and some gunboats moored in the 
Mississippi flanked their right. Sudden 
and tremendous was the cannonade, 
withering the musketry fire that burst 
upon the English column and mowed 
down their ranks. Red-hot shot set 
fire to the houses which were near to 
them. 

Infantry Hurled Back. 

Scorched by flame, stifled with smoke, 
shattered by the close discharge, the 
infantry were, for the time, powerless, 
and had to be withdrawn to either side 
of the line of attack, and the artillery 
were hurried forward to reply to the 
American guns. To no purpose. The 
contest was too unequal. The heavy 
guns in the batteries and the broadsides 
of the Louisiana destroyed the light 
English field-pieces almost before they 
could come into action. The infantry 
again pressed forward, only to find 
themselves hopelessly checked by the 
canal. Staggered, shaken, and dis- 
ordered, the English columns reeled 
under the blows which they had re- 
ceived. 

A halt was ordered, and then, slowly, 
sullenly, with sorrow, the whole force 
fell back. Again Sir Edward Paken- 
ham found himself obliged to bivouac 
by the river side instead of occupying 
New Orleans, again he had to consider 
how the determined American resist- 
ance was to be overcome. The Eng- 
lish bivouac was formed two miles from 
the American lines. A sorry place of 
rest it was. 

Once more the outposts were ex- 
posed to the stealthy attacks of an 
ever-vigilant, cunning, and active foe. 
Even the main body was hardly secure, 



372 VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAIy JACKSON. 



for, by giving their guns a great eleva- 
tion, the Americans were occasionally 
able to pitch their shot among the 
camp fires. 

Jackson Fortifying. 

The possibility of turning the ene- 
my's left by penetrating the morass 
which protected it was contemplated, 
but the idea had to be abandoned as 
soon as conceived. In the meanwhile 
General Jackson was vigorously at work 
in strengthening his already strong po- 
sition. Numerous parties could be seen 
laboring upon his lines, and daily rein- 
forcements came in to swell the num- 
bers of their defenders. By the sugges- 
tion of Commodore Patterson, a strong 
field-work was constructed on the op- 
posite bank of the river, and armed 
with heavy ship-guns, from which a 
flanking fire could be poured on all the 
space over which the Knglish must at- 
tack. 

In view of the many difficulties which 
presented themselves. General Paken- 
ham called a council of war, which was 
attended by all the English naval and 
military leaders. It was impossible to 
carry the American lines by assault, for 
their powerful artillery would deal cer- 
tain destruction to infantry columns. 
To turn them was impossible, and their 
defenders could not be induced by any 
manoeuvring to leave their protection. 
The council decided on the only other 
possible alternative — to treat them as a 
regular fortification, and, by breaching 
batteries, to try to silence some of their 
guns, and to make in them a practicable 
gap, through which an entrance might 
be effected. ' 

To give effect to this resolution the 
29th, 30th, and 31st December were 



employed in bringing up heavy cannon, 
accumulating a supply of ammunition, 
and making preparations as for a regu- 
lar siege. When these arrangements 
were complete — arrangements which 
demanded the most strenuous and unre- 
mitting toil from everyone, from the 
general in command to the humblest 
private soldier — hesitation had no place 
and delay was at an end. Under cover 
of night, on the 31st, half of the army 
stole silently to the front, passing the 
pickets, and halted within 300 yards of 
the American lines. 

Here a chain of works was rapidly 
marked out, the greater part of the 
detachment piled their firelocks, and 
addressed themselves vigorously to work 
with pick and shovel, while the remain- 
der stood by armed and ready for their 
defence. So silently and to such good 
purpose was the work performed, that 
before the day dawned six batteries were 
completed, in which were mounted 
thirty pieces of heavy ordnance. 

Shrouded in Gloom. 

The morning of the ist January, 
181 5, broke dark and gloomy. A thick 
mist obscured the sun, and, even at a 
short distance, no objects could be seen 
distinctly. The English gunners stood 
anxiously by their pieces, and the whole 
of the infantry were formed hard by, 
ready to rush into the breach which 
they hoped to see made. Slowly, very 
slowly, the mist at length rolled away, 
and the American camp was fully 
exposed to view. 

As yet unconscious of the near pre- 
sence of the thirty muzzles which were 
ready to belch forth their contents, the 
Americans were seen on parade. Bands 
were playing, colors flying, and there 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 373 



was no preparation for immediate deadly 
struggle. Suddenly the English batter- 
ies opened, and the scene was changed. 
There was a moment of dire confusion, 
a dissolution of the ordered masses 
which stood ready for review by their 
general. The batteries were unmanned, 
the pieces silent. But, though the 
English salvo was unexpected, there 
was no real unreadiness to resist and to 
reply to its stern challenge. 

Storm of Shot and Shell. 

The American corps fell quickly into 
their positions in the line of defence, 
their artillery, after brief delay, opened 
with rapidity and precision, the furious 
cannonade on both sides rent the air 
with its thunder, and battery answered 
battery with storm of shot and shell. 
Heavy as was the attackers' fire, how- 
ever, it produced comparatively little 
effect on the solid earthworks of the 
defence, while the numerous guns which 
Jackson had mounted, aided by the 
flanking fire from the works on the 
opposite bank of the river, were crush- 
ing in their power. 

Hour after hour the duel continued, 
and yet no advantage was gained which 
would warrant Pakenham in hurling his 
infantry at the fortifica^^^ions that stood 
in their front. The English ammuni- 
tion began to fail and their fire slack- 
ened, while that of the Americans 
redoubled in vigor ; and towards evening 
it became evident that another check 
had been suffered, and that again the 
invading army must fall back. 

Dire was the mortification in the 
English ranks, bitter the murmurs that 
spread from man to man. The army 
had endured hardships with cheerful- 
ness, they had undertaken severest toil 



with alacrity, but they had thought that 
victory was their due, and still they 
encountered repeated defeat. Now their 
encampment was open to the enemy's 
unremitting fire, and advance or retreat 
seemed equally impossible. 

But Pakenham had some, at least, of 
the best qualities of a leader. He 
refused to lose heart, and adopted a plan 
which well merited success by its bold, 
ness, and whose ultimate failure was in 
no way to be credited to any laxity on 
his part. He had recognized that the 
enemy's flanking battery on the right 
bank of the Mississippi waj, his greatest 
obstacle, and he conceived the idea of 
sending a strong force across the river, 
which should carry this battery by 
assault and turn its guns against the 
Americans themselves, while a simul- 
taneous attack should be delivered di- 
rectly upon the intrenchments. 

All at Work. 

To do this, however, a sufficient num- 
ber of boats must be provided, and it 
was necessary to cut a canal from th > ; 
Bayou Bienvenu wide and deep enough 
to float the ships' launches now in the 
lake. Upon this arduous undertaking 
the whole of the force was at once set to 
work. Day and night the labor was 
carried on ; relay after relay of soldiers 
took up the task, and by January 6th it 
was accomplished. No better means 
could have been taken to restore the 
spirits of the men than the imposing of 
work, however hard, which seemed to 
promise a definitely favorable influence 
on their fortunes. 

Discouragement and forebodings were 
still further dissipated by the unex- 
pected arrival of Major-General Lambert 
with the 7th and 43rd, two fine battal- 



374 VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON 



ionSj each mustering 800 effective men. 
Furtjier reinforcements of marines and 
seamen also joined, bringing the Eng- 
{yfib. fighting strength up to nearly 




ANDREW JACKSON. 

1 2,000. At the same date, General Jack- 
son had probably about 5,000 under 
his command. 

It has been said that the canal from 
the bayou to the river was finished on 
the 6th, and no time was lost in carry- 
ing out the plan of which it was so 
great a factor. Boats were ordered up 
for the conveyance of 1,400 men, and 
Colonel Thornton, with the 85th, the 
marines, and a party of sailors, was 
appointed to cross the river. But ill- 
fortune still dogged the English gen- 
eral, still it seemed fated that his best- 
laid plans should be frustrated by acci- 



dent. The soil through which ttie 
canal was dug being soft, part of the 
bank gave way, choking the cliaunel 
and frustrating the passage of the heavi- 
est boats. These, in turn? 
impeded others, and, in- 
stead of a numerous flo-» 
tilla, only sufficient for 
about 350 men reached 
their destination, and 
even these did not arrive 
at the time appointed. 

It was intended that 
Colonel Th'-n ton's force 
should cross the Missis- 
sippi immediately after 
dark on the evening of 
the 7th. They were to 
carry the enemy's battery 
and point the guns on 
Jackson's lines before 
daybreak on the 8th. The 
discharge of a rocket was 
to give them the signal 
to commence firing, and 
also was to let loose the 
rest of the army in a di- 
rect attack. 

The disposition for thiu 
attack was as follows : — General Keane> 
with the 95th, the light companies of the 
2 1st, 4th, and 44th, and the two West 
India regiments, was to make a demon- 
stration on the enemy's right ; General 
Gibbs, with the 4th, 21st, ^4th, and 93rd 
should force their left ; whilst General 
Ivambert, with the 7th and 43rr ^ re- 
mained in reserve. Scaling-ladders and 
fascines were provided to fill the ditch 
and mount the wall ; and the honorable 
duty of carrying them to the point of 
attack was allotted to the 44th, as being 
the regiment most experienced in Amer- 
ican war. It was hoped that the fate oi 



iTICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAI. JACKSON. a?5 



New Orleans would be sealed ou the 8th 
January. 

While the rest of the army laid down 
to sleep on the night of the 7th, Colonel 
Thornton, with 1,400 men, moved to 
the river's brink. But the boats had 
not arrived. Hour after hour passed 
before any came, and then so few were 
they that only the 85th, with about 50 
seamen — in all 340 men — could be em- 
barked. The duty admitted of no hesi- 
tation or delay, and Colonel Thornton, 
with his force thus sadly weakened, 
pushed off. 

Fatal Errors. 

The loss of time was irreparable. It 
was nearly dawn ere they quitted the 
canal, and they should have been on the 
opposite bank six hours earlier. In vain 
they made good their landing without 
opposition ; day had broken, the signal 
rocket was seen in the air, and they 
were still four miles from the battery 
which ought long before to have been 
in their hands. 

Before daylight the main body was 
formed in advance of the pickets, ready 
for the concerted attack. Eagerly they 
listened for the expected sound of firing, 
which should show that Thornton was 
doing his work ; but they listened in 
vain. Nor did Pakenham's plan fail him 
in this respect alone. The army 'mi its 
stern array, was ready for the assanlt, 
but not a ladder or a fascine was in the 
field. The 44th, who had been ap- 
pointed to bring them, had misunder- 
stood or disobeyed their orders, and 
were now at the head of the column 
without the means of crossing the 
enemy's ditch or mounting his parapet. 

Naturally incensed beyond measure, 
ihe general galloped to Colonel Mullens, 



who led the 44th, and bade him return 
with his regiment for the ladders ; but 
the opportunity for using them was lost, 
and when they were at last brought up' 
they were scattered useless over the field 
by the demoralized bearers. 

A Withering Fire. 

The order to advance had been given, 
and, leaving the 44th behind them, the 
other regiments rushed to the assault. 
On the left a portion of the 21st, under 
the gallant Rennie, carried a battery, 
but, unsupported and attacked in turn 
by overpowering nunibevs of the enemy, 
they were driven back with terrible 
loss. The rest of the 21st, with the 
4th, supported by the 93rd, pushed with 
desperate bravery into the ditch, and, in 
default of the ladders, strove to scale the 
rampart by mounting on each other's 
shoulders — and some, indeed, actually 
effected an entrance into the enemy's 
works. 

But, all too few for the task, they 
were quickly overpowered and slain, or 
taken prisoners. The withering fire 
that swept the glacis mowed down the 
attacking columns by companies. Vain- 
ly was the most desperate courage dis- 
played. Unseen themselves, the de- 
fenders of the entrenchments fired at a 
distance of a few yards into the throng 
that stood helplessly exposed, while 
the guns on the other side of the river 
— yet unmenaced — kept up a dead!' 
cannonade,, Never have English soldiers 
died to so little profit, never has so 
heavy a loss been so little avenged. 

Sir Edward Pakenham saw his troops 
in confusion, and the wavering in effort 
which ever preludes hopeless flight. 
All that a gallant leader could do was 
done by him. The 44th had come up, 



576 VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 



but in so great disorder that little could 
be hoped from such a battalion. Riding 
to their head, he called for Colonel 
Mullens to lead them forward, but he 
was not to be found at his post. Placing 
himself at their head, the general pre- 
pared to lead thera in person ; but his 
horse was struck by a musket-ball, 
which also gave him a slight wound. 
He mounted another horse, and again 
essayed to lead the 44th, when again he 
was hit. Death took him before he had 
tasted the full bitterness of defeat, and 
he fell into the arms of his aide-de- 
camp. 

Brave Officers. 

Colonel Mullens was subsequently 
tried by court-martial and cashiered. 
General Gibbs and General Keane did 
not fail to do their duty as English 
soldiers. Riding through the ranks, 
they strove to restore order and to en- 
courage the failing energy of the attack, 
till both were wounded and were borne 
from the field. Their leaders gone, and 
ignorant of what should be done, small 
wonder if the troops first halted, then 
began slowly to retire, and then betook 
themselves to disordered flight. Great 
as was the disaster, its results might 
have been even more crushing than 
they were but that the 7th and 43d, 
presenting an unbroken, steadfast front, 
prevented any attempt on the part of 
the Americans to quit the shelter of 
their lines in pursuit. j 

We left Colonel Thornton and his 
340 men on the right bank of the Mis- 
sissippi, and four miles from the battery 
which they had been detailed to take, 
and whose power was so severely felt 
by the main body of the English army. 
They had seen the signal-rocket which 



told that their comrades were about to 
attack, and late though they were, they 
pressed forward to do their share of the 
day's operations. A strong American 
outpost was encountered, but it could 
not withstand the rush of the 85th, and 
fled in confusion. The position where 
the battery was mounted was reached, 
and to less daring men than Colonel 
Thornton and his little following mighf 
have seemed impregnable. 

Desperate Assault. 

Ivike their countrymen on the other 
side, the Americans, 1,500 in number, 
were strongly entrenched, a ditch and 
thick parapet covering their front. 
Two field-pieces commanded the road, 
and flanking fire swept the ground over 
which any attack must be made. The 
assailants had no artillery, and no fas- 
cines or ladders by means of which to 
pass the entrenchment. But, unappalled 
by superior numbers, undeterred by 
threatening obstacles, the English 
formed for immediate assault. The 
85 th extended across the whole line ; 
the seamen, armed with cutlasses as 
for boarding, prepared to storm the 
battery, and the few marines remained 
in reserve. 

The bugle sounded the advance. The 
sailors gave the wild cheer that has so 
often told the spirit and determination 
of the British service, and rushed for- 
ward. They were met and momentarily 
checked by a shower of grape and can- 
ister, but again they pressed on. The 
85th dashed forward to their aid in the 
face of a heavy fire of musketry, and 
threatened the parapet at all points. 
From both sides came an unremitting 
discharge; but the English, eager to be 
at close quarters, began to mount the 



VICTORIES OF COMMODORE PERRY AND GENERAL JACKSON. 



371 



parapet. The Americans, seized with 
sudden panic, turned and fled in hope- 
less rout, and the entrenchment, with 
eighteen pieces of cannon, was taken. 
Too late ! These very guns had been 
able already to take their part in deal- 
ing destruction to Sir Edward Paken- 
ham's morning attack, and if they were 
now taken — if their defenders were dis- 
persed — they had done all that they 
were wanted to do. 

Even yet, if the disaster to the Brit- 
ish main body had not been so complete 
and demoralizing, they might have 
been turned upon Jackson's lines and 
covered a second assault ; but this was 
not to be. General Lambert, on whom 
had fallen the command of all that 
remained of the army, resolved — per- 
haps, under the circumstances, with 
wisdom — to make no further attempts 
on New Orleans. To withdraw his 



army was, in any case, difficult ; an- 
other defeat would have rendered it 
impossible ; and, as the Americans had 
gained confidence in proportion as the 
English had lost it, defeat was only too 
probable. 

In the last fatal action nearly 1,500 
officers and men had fallen, including 
two generals, for General Gibbs had 
only survived his wound for a few 
hours. The English dead lay in piles 
upon the plain. Of the Americans who 
had so gallantly defended their country, 
eight only were killed and fourteen 
wounded. 

Alas ! that electricity did not then 
exist to prevent so great a sacrifice of 
honor and life ; for the preliminaries of 
peace between England and the United 
States had been signed in Europe before 
the campaign of New Orleans was be- 
gun. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 



Great Battle of Gettysburg. 




UR object in this part of the 
present volume is to depict 
only those famous battles in the 
Nineteenth Century which had 
a determining effect upon the fate of 
nations, those decisive contests that 
have either fully settled the important 
questions in dispute, or have had a 
powerful influence in doing this. There 
have been bloody struggles between 
great armies on the battle field that 
may be called crises in the history of 
nations. They have been turning points 
in human affairs. Such a battle was 
that of Gettysburg, a three days' fight 
that turned the tide of fortune in the 
great American Civil War. 

Why in the outset the celebrated Con- 
federate commander, Lee, undertook 
the unpromising invasion of Pennsyl- 
vania after the disastrous failure in 
Maryland the fall before, and why once 
north of the Potomac he did not, in- 
stead of looking backwards, cut loose 
entirely from hi« base and rush for 
I^hiladelphia and the heart of the North, 
are two moot questions of absorbing 
interest to the veterans of the Civil War. 
After the halt of Ivongstreet and Hill 
in the vicinity of Chambersburg the 
reason why the invasion was pushed no 
further and Ewell was drawn back from 
the Susquehanna is found in the vigor- 
ous operations of the Union army. 
Meade's unexpected appearance at Get- 
teysburg admonished Lee that it was 
••oo late to cross the Susquehanna. He 
8'78 



was compelled to concentrate, and his 
defeat brought the invasion and all 
hope of further advance to an end. 

Lee's successes at Fredericksburg and 
Chancellorsville had given him un- 
limited confidence in his troops and the 
natural inclination to belittle his enemy. 
Grant's grip upon Vicksburg compelled 
the reinforcement of the Confederates 
in the West, or such movements else- 
where as would compel Grant to detach 
troops, and thus loosen his hold upon 
the Mississippi stronghold. Lee ob- 
jected at that time to dividing his army 
by detaching any part of it to the West. 
He preferred to do something on his 
own front to relieve the Confederate 
situation. 

Therefore, during May and June, 
1863, his army was strengthened in 
every possible manner, and the crossing 
of the Potomac determined upon in 
order to transfer the war upon Northern 
soil. These were the primary causes of 
the invasion of Pennsylvania, and of 
the great disaster which overtook the 
Confederate army at Getteysburg. 

A movement to the Potomac in force 
was always an easy one for the Confed- 
erate commanders. Covered by the 
Rappahannock and the Blue Ridge 
Mountains, Lee had no difficulty in 
making the march, and on the route 
surprising, capturing and scattering the 
Union forces in the valley under Gen- 
eral Milroy, an officer of courage and 
patriotism, but of very unsound judg- 



GREAT BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 



379 



ment and little military capacity. Until 
Lee knew what effect his tentative move- 
ments were having on the Union army 
at Fredericksburg, under Hooker, his 
march was hesitating and uncertain. 
Hooker had quickly detected the Con- 
federate withdrawal and foreshadowed 
what actually followed, an invasion. 

Across the Potomac. 

He asked President Lincoln for per- 
mission to cross the Rappahannock and 
make a dash for Richmond, which it is 
now clear from the official reports of 
Lee would instantly have called him 
back to the defense of his capital. Mr. 
Lincoln, however, doubted the expe- 
diency of Hooker's bold project. It is 
probable after the Chancellorsville dis- 
aster he had misgivings as to Hooker's 
nerve and capacity. He, therefore, pre- 
vented the proposed counter move on 
Richmond, and henceforward Hooker 
contented himself with simply moving 
on interior lines to cover Washington. 
The moment Lee perceived that Hooker 
had withdrawn from the line of the 
Rappahannock his hesitation disap- 
peared. Longstreet and Hill imme- 
diately followed Ewell in to the Shen- 
andoah Valley. 

On June 1 5 th the Confederate General 
Ewell crossed the Potomac at Wil- 
liamsport. Jenkins, with his cavalry, 
was pushed forward to Chambersburg ; 
Rodes's division occupied Hagerstown, 
Md., and that of Edward Johnson, 
Sharpsburg, while Early's division 
threatened Harper's Ferry from the vi- 
cinity of Shepherdstown. 

On the 2 1st, while occupying these 
positions Ewell received orders fr m 
Lee to "take Harrisburg." At this 
time the Confederate army was strung 



out from Fredericsburg to Chambers- 
burg, a most extraordinary and danger- 
ous disposition in the immediate pre- 
sence of the enemy. After Hooker's 
withdrawal from Fredericsburg the long 
Confederate line was now rapidly 
shortened by the concentration of Long- 
street and Hill at Chambersburg. 

On the 24th Hill's corps crossed the 
Potomac at Shepherdstown and vici- 
nity, while Longstreet was crossing at 
Williamsport. These two corps went 
into bivouac at Chambersburg on the 
27th, where they remained quietly un- 
til the 29th of June, their foraging par- 
ties meanwhile collecting supplies and 
raiding the country in every direction. 

A Ravenous Horde. 

Their ravages were fearful. The 
honest farmers and burghers of Mary- 
land and the lower counties of the old 
Keystone State must have been aghast 
at the hungry hordes swarming up 
from the South. General Lee, with 
cool irony, reported that he gave orders 
that all supplies taken must be care- 
fully paid for, which was done in Con- 
federate notes, then being worth but 
little in the South itself, and nothing 
whatever in Pennsylvania. A Union 
scout at Hagerstown reported that the 
Confederates carried their money in 
flour barrels. The reckless abandon- 
ment of these soldiers to liberality is 
illustrated in the astonishment of one 
rich old farmer, who was forced to take! 
a five dollar Confederate note instead ^ 
of fifty cents in Union money for two 
old horse-shoes. 

Ewell had rapidly marched on Car- 
lisle with Rodes's and Johnson's divi- 
sions, sending Early to York. Carlisle, 
only fifteen miles from Harrisburg, 



380 



GREAT BATTLE OP GETTYSBURG. 



was occupied on the 27th and York 
on the 28th. This movement had 
again somewhat scattered the Con- 
federates, but Lee at Chambersburg 
with two-thirds of his army was about 
ready to move forward in support of 
Ewell's advance against Harrisburg 
when something happened. General 
Hooker had followed Lee across the 
Potomac ; his movements up to June 
28th had been well conceived and ad- 
mirably carried out. 

His eventual purpose had been to 
throw himself across Lee's line of com- 
munications with the Potomac and 
force the Confederates to a decisive en- 
gagement on his own terms. But a dis- 
agreement arose between the General- 
in-Chief, Halleck, at Washington, and 
General Hooker, in regard to the dis- 
position of the Union troops at Harper's 
Ferry, and Hooker had thereupon asked 
to be relieved of the command of the 
Army of the Potomac. Halleck had no 
confidence in Hooker, and the latter' s 
request was instantly granted. 

Two Gallant Commanders. 
At that time there was only two ofii- 
cers in that army whose character and 
achievements had raised them to the 
plane of so high and important a com- 
mand. They were Major General John 
F. Reynolds, commanding the First 
Corps, and Major General George G. 
Meade, commanding the Fifth Corps. 
It is a curious fact that they were both 
Pennsylvanians, and both were also 
West Pointers. Reynolds ranked Meade, 
and it is known that it was the original 
intention of the military authorities to 
confer the chief command on him when 
Hooker should go. But Reynolds had 
been sounded, and bad declined the 



command unless allowed certain free- 
dom of action, which it was deemea 
inadmissable to grant. Therefore the 
command was conferred upon General 
Meade, who in turn gave the Fifth 
Corps to General Sykes. 

A Masterly Man. 

\ his change occurred near Frederick, 
Md., on the morning of June 28, only 
three days before the armies met in 
mortal combat at Gettysburg. Meade 
was an able officer, who had grown up 
with the Army of the Potomac, and 
had the confidence of all the superior 
generals. He was, perhaps, not a dash- 
ing fighter, like Hooker or Reynolds, 
but he was, nevertheless, a man of 
courage and judgment, and knew how 
to marshal troops on the field of battle 
as well as any officer living. The three 
chief figures in the Army of the Poto- 
mac, Meade, Reynolds and Hancock, 
were all Pennsylvanians, and all to 
perform leading parts in the drama 
upon Pennsylvania soil. 

The new Federal commander, after 
taking his bearings, abandoned Hook- 
er's plan of merely following Lee and 
placing the Union army square across 
his communications. Meade's direc- 
tions from Halleck were to cover Wash- 
ington and Baltimore. General Meade 
pushed all his corps directly northwards 
on the inner line, with the object of 
attacking any of Lee's forces that came 
in his way, under the belief that this 
would compel the Confederates to im- 
mediately drop his movement across 
the Susquehanna and turn and fight. 
That was precisely the immediate eflfect 
of Meade's movement. 

This forward movement of the Union 
army, then, was what had happened to 



GREAT BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 



381 



change Lee's plans. Instead of order- 
ing Longstreet and Hill forward to the 
ncli fields of the Susquehanna, in sup- 
port of Ewell, and, perhaps, to the 
sacking of Harrisburg and Philadel- 
phia, the crncentration of 
the great rel -d fighting ma 
chine was o be effected 
by drawing Ewell' s scat- 
tered divisions back to 
Gettysburg. It is worth 
noting here that upon learn- 
ing of the rapid concentra" 
tion of the Union army on 
his immediate flank Lee's 
original idea was to concen- 
trate about Chanibersburg. 
There are many well-in- 
formed people who still 
cling to tlie exploded no- 
tion that the battle of Get- 
tysburg was an accident. It 
was not so. 

After considering the sit- 
uation for a few hours after 
the necessity for withdrawal 
of Ewell was admitted, Gen- 
eral I/Ce perceived the im- 
portance of Gettysburg as 
a great strategic position by 
reason of the many excellent turnpike 
roads which radiate therefrom. At 
Gettysburg he would not only occupy 
a commanding position from which to 
deliver battle, but one available from 
which to fall back toward the Potomac 
and one threatening both Washington 
and Baltimore. These considerations 
impelled Lee to change his previous 
order to Ewell to come back to Chani- 
bersburg, in the following terms ; 

"Headquarters Army of Northern 
Virginia, Chambersburg, June 28, 1863, 
—Lieutenant General R. S. Ewell, 



Commanding Corps — General : I wrote 
you last night stating that General 
Hooker was reported to have crossed 
the Potomac, and is advancing by the 
way of Middletown, the head of hi-^ 




GENERAL GEORGE G. MEADE. 

column being at that point, in Frederick 
county. I directed you in that letter 
to move your forces to this point. If 
you have not already progressed on the 
road, and if you have no good reason 
against it, I desire you to move in the 
direction of Gettysburg, via Heidlers- 
burg, where you will have a turnpike 
most of the way, and you can thus join 
your other divisions to Early's, which 
is east of the mountains. I think it 
preferable to keep on the east side ot 
the mountains. 

"R. E. Lee, GeneraV* 



S82 



GREAT B ATTIRE OF GETTYSBURG, 



The history of the event is proof that 
in thus changing the point of concentra- 
tion from Chambersburg, which was 
behind the screen of a mountain range, 
to Gettysburg, in the close presence of 
his enemy. General L/ce made a serious 
mistake. We can now see that he was 
playing into General Meade's hands. 
It is obvious, however, from his Pipe 
Creek plan of defensive battle, that 
General Meade expected that Lee would 
be compelled to do this very thing. 
Had Lee remained at Chambersburg 
Meade would have been compelled to 
cross the mountain to beat him up, and 
thus might have become the aggres- 
sor against some strong position and 
been defeated. 

General Meade's Plan. 

On the 28th and 29tli the northward 
movement of the Union army had been 
rapid ; General Reynolds had been put 
in command of the left wing, on the 
danger flank of the advance. It was 
composed of the First, Third and 
Eleventh Corps. On the 29th these 
three corps, commanded by a fighting 
General, who saw his native State for 
the first time under the iron heel of the 
invader, were within ten miles of Get- 
tysburg. On the 30th Reynolds, with 
the First Corps, had advanced to Marsh 
creek, within four miles of Gettysburg, 
while the Third and Eleventh Corps 
remained at Emmittsburg. 

It was during this day that General 
Meade's policy of fighting behind the 
iPipe creek line a defensive battle be- 
' comes manifest in the movement of the 
troops. While Reynolds was far out 
toward the front and left, feeling for 
the enemy, with orders to fall back be- 
hind Pipe creek if practicable or advis- 



able, in case of collision, the other corps 
of the army were back from ten to 
twenty-five miles from Gettysburg. 
On the afternoon of the 30tli Buford's 
division of cavalry had occupied Gettys- 
burg, and remained there. 

How the Battle Began. 

Let us now turn to the Confederate 
columns that we may understand how 
the explosion occurred at Gettysburg, 
and not along Pipe creek, as Meade 
tentatively hoped it would. Rodes, of 
Ewell's corps, was moving on Gettys- 
burg from Carlisle, at the north, by 
way of Heidlersburg ; Early was mov» 
ing on Gettysburg from York, at the 
east, by way of Heidlersburg; Hill's 
corps, followed by Longstreet's two 
divisions of Hood and McLaws, was 
moving on Gettysburg from Chambers- 
burg, at the west, joined by Johnson's 
division, of Ewell's somewhere in the 
vicinity of Cashtown, in the movement 
of the 1st of July. Most of Hill's corps 
was bivouacked at and about Cashtown 
on the night of the 30th, ready to re- 
sume the march in the morning. Early 
and Rodes were not far from Heidlers- 
burg. 

Fifty thousand Confederates were 
within eight miles of Gettysburg on 
the morning of July ist, which was 
occupied by Buford's small division of 
cavalry, supported by the First Corps 
of 9,000 infantry, four miles off. Be- 
sides these there were approximately the 
30,000 men of the Third, Eleventh and 
Twelfth Corps from eight to ten miles 
away. None of the Union troops were 
in motion. 

On the morning of July i, 1863, Gen- 
eral Heth's division of Hill's Confed- 
erate Corps marched on Gettysburg to 



GREAT BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 



383 



tunity had come. The Pipe Creek line 
dropped out of his mind instantly, and 
he made ready for battle. 

He then rode forward rapidly to join 
Biiford at the front. The two generals 
went up into the belfry of the seminary^ 



capture some shoes for his men, fol- 
lowed by Pender's division. Buford's 
cavalry had been put in position some 
two miles in front of the town, squarely 
across the road to Cashtown, and op- 
posed Heth's advance. These opposing 
troops collided about 
9.30 A.M., on Wednes- 
day, July I. Buford'f 
position made the cor 
centration of the Con^ 
federate army at Get- 
tysburg impossible un- 
less he was brushed 
away. That was the 
job now undertaken 
by Heth, which pre- 
cipitated the greatest 
battle of the Civil War. 
Heth, acting under 
Lee's orders, did not 
know this, but thought 
he was making a sim- 
ple raid for shoes. 

Buford had detected 
the advantages of Get- 
tysburg, and deter- 
mined to hold the town 
until he could hear 



from Reynolds. He had 

1 r 11 ;, ^^A ^o GENERAL JAMES I,ONGSTREET 

been fully convinced as ^ -' 




early as the night previous that the 
whole Confederate army was converg- 
ing on Gettysburg. He sent a courier 
to Reynolds with the information that 
the Confederates in force were coming 
down the Cashtown pike, and asking 
for help and directions. Reynolds, 
burning to fight at the first opportunity, 
immediately put the First Corps, under 
Doubleday, in motion to support Bu- 
ford, and despatched orders to the Third 
and Eleventh Corps, further in the rear, 
to move forward rapidly. His oppor- 



situated on Oak Ridge. An examina- 
tion of Heth's lines and the road beyond 
Willoughby's run through their field 
glasses disclosing the rapid advance of 
large bodies of Confederate infantry and 
artillery, corroborated Buford's shout 
to Reynolds on his arrival that the 
"devil was to pay." Reynolds came 
down and sent couriers in different di- 
rections to hurry forward the Union 
infantry. Buford's cavalry was now 
hard pressed and slowly yielding to 
Heth's advance. 



384 



GREAT BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 



Buford made a magnificent fight, hold- 
ing the Confederates at bay for an hour 
or two. Heth had orders not to bring 
on a general engagement until Lee's 
army was all up, and his movements at 
first were leisurely. Archer's and 
Davis's Brigades were deployed on the 
right and left of the Cashtown road, 
and pushed forward towards Gettys- 
burg and the shoes they so much 
needed. 

Getting Into Position. 

Reynolds after making a rapid exam- 
ination of the field and surrounding 
topography, which was favorable for 
defensive military operations, and di- 
recting Buford to hold on, with the 
remark that he would bring up his en- 
tire three corps to this point, then rode 
off rapidly to bring forward his leading 
division of infantry, under General 
James S. Wadsworth. It was hurried 
across the fields and swung into line 
behind Buford, who, thus relieved, 
retired to the rear. General Cutler's 
Brigade was on the right of the Cash- 
town road, and Meredith's Brigade of 
Western troops, known in the army 
as the "Iron Brigade," on its left fac- 
ing westward. Cutler confronting Davis 
and Meredith Archer. 

It is pretty well attested that this 
great fight was opened by the Fifty- 
sixth Pennsylvania, under Colonel Wil- 
liam Hoffman, though it has been dis- 
puted by the men of the Second Wis- 
consin, of the Iron Brigade. However 
this may be. Cutler's Brigade was 
struck partially in flank by Davis, and 
quickly repulsed and driven back. On 
the left the Iron Brigade, led by the 
Second Wisconsin, pushed forward for 
McPherson's wooded ridge simulta- 



neously with Archer's entry into it from 
the west. 

At that moment General Reynolds 
rode up fror" the right, where he had 
been anxiously observing Cutler's dis- 
aster. He ordered the Iron Brigade to 
advance at the double-quick, shouting 
to the Second Wisconsin, " Forward, 
men, forward, for God's sake, and drive 
those fellows out of the woods !" These 
were probably the last words he ever 
uttered As he turned to look for and 
direct the oncoming supports he was 
struck in the head or upper neck 
by a sharpshooter's bullet and fel' 
dead. 

Death of Reynolds. 

But his splendid troops rushed for- 
ward, driving the enemy back, clearing 
the wood and capturing General Archer 
and several hundred of his men. Thus 
perished the great soldier, John F. Rey- 
nolds. His death was a serious blow 
to the Union cause, and for the moment, 
for want of a directing head with pres- 
tige sufficient to give moral weight to 
his commands, endangered Union suc- 
cess. But his courage and ready deci- 
sion determined the field of battle and, 
ultimately, the victory. 

Cutler's lost ground was soon re- 
covered by a brilliant charge of the 
Sixth Wisconsin, of the Iron Brigade, 
upon the flank of the Davis's Confed- 
erate brigade, in which it captured the 
Second Mississippi Regiment and its 
flag. Davis was repulsed, and in turn 
driven back greatly shattered. The 
Union lines were then rectified. The 
Second and Third Divisions of the First 
Corps now arrived, deploying to the 
right and left of Wadsworth under a 
heavy artillery fire. Thus in half an 



GREAT BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 



385 



hour Heth's advance had been checked 
with heavy loss. 

But his two remaining brigades were 
brought forward, and Pender's fresh 
division of 8000 men were at hand. 
New dispositions were made and the 
battle renewed. Rodes had now ap- 
peared from the north, and was coming 
down upon the right flank of the Union 
line. Here were 24,000 Confederates 
converging on a single Union corps of 
9000 effectives. Besides, Early, from 
York, was also arriving on its right 
rear, with 8000 more. 

The unequal contest was terrible, 
but every effort of Heth, Pender and 
Rodes to break the heroic First Corps 
failed until late in the afternoon. It 
received no help until after mid-day, 
when General O. O. Howard's Eleventh 
Corps, 9000 strong, began to arrive. 

Howard Driven Back. 
Howard assumed general command. 
He sent two of his divisions to the 
north of Gettysburg to protect the right 
flank against Rodes and Early, the lat- 
ter coming on from the north-east. 
General Steinwehr was held in reserve 
on Cemetery Hill, which was fortified. 
But Early got upon the flank of How- 
ard's troops, which were enfiladed by 
his artillery, and, aided by an onset of 
Rodes, they were broken and driven 
back through Gettysburg in disorder. 
This left the First Corps' right and 
rear uncovered, and, in turn, forced its 
rapid retreat through the town to the 
heights beyond, where it joined Stein- 
wehr and formed a new line from Culp's 
Hill westward. The withdrawal of the 
First Corps occurred about 4 p. m. 
Many prisoners were lost by both corps 
in the retreat through the town. 
25 



General I^ee arrived on Seminary 
Ridge in time to see the victorious 
advance of his troops and the disorgan- 
ized Federals streaming up Cemetery 
Hill. He sent discretionary orders to 
Ewell to pursue, but that officer, en- 
gaged in readjusting his broken lines, 
made no further advance. He has been 
greatly criticised by Confederate parti- 
sans for his failure to follow up his 
advantages. But as the almost impreg- 
nable line of Culp's and Cemetery Hill 
was defeated by at least 10,000 men, 
3,500 of whom had not fired a gun, sup- 
ported by a powerful artillery, it is 
probable Ewell would have been re- 
pulsed had he attacked. 

He reported that the position was for- 
midable, and that it would have been 
absurd to attack it then in his condi- 
tion. Night closed on the first day's 
battle at Gettysburg. A general battle 
had been precipitated by the fighting 
energy of General Reynolds, in spite of 
Ivee's orders to delay an engagement 
until the whole army was up. 

No Jackson There. 

General Lee was now without his 
great leader and incomparable fighter, 
General T. J. Jackson, popularly called 
"Stonewall Jackson," and was com- 
pelled to bear the whole responsibility 
of the engagement. It was thought by 
many that if such an able general as 
Jackson had been on the field the final 
result might have been different. 

The magnitude of this battle of the 
1st set aside all theoretical schemes to 
decoy Lee down to Pipe creek. About 
midday General Meade, at Taneytown, 
was informed of Reynold's death and 
the state of the battle. Later Buford 
sent word that a "tremendous battle 



88(5 



GREAT BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 



was raging with varying success ;' ' that 
"there seems to be no directing head,'' 
and that "we need help now." Gen- 
eral Meade never hesitated when con- 
fronted with the necessity of changing 
his plan ; he prepared to fight at Gettys- 
burg. General W. S. Hancock was 
ent forward to assume command and 




GENERAL T. J. (sTONEWALL) JACKSON. 

advise Meade of the practicability of 
fighting a battle there. His report was 
favorable, and the whole army was im- 
mediately sent forward to Gettysburg. 

Between sundown and 7 a. m. of July 
1 St the Second, Third, Fifth and Twelfth 
Corps had arrived and gone into position 
along Cemetery Ridge. The Sixth 
Corps, twenty-five miles away, did not 
arrive until afternoon. General Meade 
him.self rcachc-'l Gett'-.s'^iir-^ At nn"d- 



night, and rode his lines, giving orders 
for the disposition of the troops as they 
arrived. General Hunt, its chief, placed 
the artillery. 

On the Confederate side, with the 
exception of Pickett's division and 
Law's brigade, Longstreet's corps ar- 
rived on the morning of the 2d, and the 
two armies were now 
concentrated face to face 
for battle. 

General Sickles, with 
the Third Corps, in the 
absence of definite orders, 
had established himself 
somewhat to the front on 
the extreme left, on some 
high ground, forming a 
sort of salient in the main 
line. After some doubts 
whether to attack with 
Ewell on the Union right 
or its left, with Long- 
street, General Lee finally 
selected Sickles as his 
point of attack on the 
2d, Hood and McLaws 
were to attack up the 
Emmittsburg road from 
the south, while Hill 
pressed Sickles in front 
from the west. 

The attack was not de- 
livered until late in the afternoon, but, 
like all of Longstreet's work, it was de- 
livered with great impetuosity and ad- 
dress when at last it came. Nearly liali 
theUnion army was brought to Sickles's 
aid during the battle, and the Confed 
erate advance was on^y stopped about 
nightf^dl, but not until after Sickles had 
been wounded, his corps driven from its 
faulty position and the Union leaders 
almost in despair. It was a fearful trial, 



GREAT BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 



387 



But as Longs treet afterwards said, his 
success had driven the Third Corps back 
into its proper place, where the line was 
unassailable. Longstreet penetrated no 
vital part of the line, but he threatened' 
the Union army with a great disaster 
when Hood's men began the ascent of 
Round Top ere it was occupied. But 
/General Warren energetically brought 
troops upon the ground in time to 
repulse the enemy and save that vital 
position. lyongstreet lost 5,000 men in 
these assaults, and the Union army an 
equal number. 

Union Army Threatened. 

Hwell was to have attacked the Union 
right beyond Gulp's Hill simultane- 
ously with Longstreet's movement, but 
the concert miscarried, and Ewell did 
not deliver battle until Longstreet's 
efforts had been exhausted or defeated. 
It was nearly night before Johnson and 
Early advanced, Rodes having failed to 
join in their attack. Early had some 
success at first along the east front of 
Cemetery Hill, but was eventually 
driven back with loss. Farther to the 
right Johnson's main attack was re- 
pulsed by the heroic Greene, but he 
occupied without opposition the breast- 
works of Ruger and Geary, withdrawn 
to reinforce Sickles. 

This unexpected success threatened 
the Baltimore pike and the rear of the 
Union army, but it was too dark for 
the enemy to perceive their advantage, 
and they sunk to rest without further 
effort. In the night Ruger's and 
Geary's commands returned ; finding 
the Confederates in possession, the 
leaders made dispositions to attack at 
daylight and drive them out. 

Although practically repulsed, the 1 



positions obtained by Longstreet on the 
Union left on the high ground along 
the Emmittsburg road and close up to 
the Round Tops, and by Ewell on the 
right, determined Lee to persist in his 
attack on the Third. It was concluded 
to be feasible to break the Union centre 
along the west front of Cemetery Ridge, 
held by Hancock with the Second 
Corps and part of the First Corps. 
Pickett's division of the fifteen Virginia 
regiments had arrived from Chambers- 
burg. 

This, with Heth's division, was se- 
lected for the work in hand. Pettigrew 
in command of the latter in the absence 
of Heth, wounded. Pickett was on 
the right and Pettigrew on the left ; 
the former was to be supported by 
Wilcox and Perry's brigades, the latter 
by Lane and Scales. Altogether the 
attacking column consisted of not less 
than 15,000 men, but Pettigrew's troops 
were unfit for so desperate an under- 
taking by reason of their fearful losses 
on the 1st. 

A Hard Struggle. 
While these preparations were in 
progress for the final assault a heavy 
battle had begun on the Union right 
for the possession of the abandoned 
breastworks of the Twelfth Corps. 
General Williams, who commanded it, 
attacked Ewell at daylight with the 
divisions of Ruger and Geary, and the 
battle continued with varying fortunes 
until after 10 o'clock. Finally John- 
son's Confederates, driven back at all 
points, sullenly retired across Rock 
creek, and with their retreat the battle 
of Gettysburg ended on the Union 
right in decisive victory. On the whole, 
after the first day's success, Ewell 's 



388 



GREAT BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 



efforts throughout the battle had been 
feeble and unavailing. He had been 
unable to bring the decimated division 
of Rodes into action at all, and Early 
and Johnson had been squarely defeated. 
These were the results on the right. 

Thunder of Guns. 

The grand assault of Pickett and 
Pettigrew, under Longstreet, was pre- 
ceded at about i p. m. by a tremendous 
artillery fire from 150 Confederate can- 
non, responded to by perhaps a hundred 
Union guns. This cannonade contin- 
ued for nearly two hours, causing great 
havoc inside the Union lines, but no 
great loss of life. It failed to shake the 
Union soldiery. By order of General 
Hunt the Union fire was slackened and 
finally ceased entirely to give oppor- 
tunity to bring up fresh batteries and 
ammunJtion to meet a heavy infantry 
assault which it was already divined by 
the Union leaders was now impending. 
It soon developed. 

To reach the Federal lines the Con- 
federates had to march a mile over open 
rolling fields under fire of many bat- 
teries. Their lines of battle, nearly a 
mile long, swept out of the woods along 
Seminary Ridge about 3.30 p. m., and 
the crisis of the battle was at hand. 
Their advance was watched hopefully 
by lyce and lyongstreet, and eagerly by 
thousands of admiring eyes on both 
sides. The Federal soldiers were not 
unnerved by the threatening sight; the 
soldiers of Hancock were coolly waiting 
to redeem their losses at Fredericks- 
burg. 

As they came on the Federal shot 
and shell and then canister from a 
hundred guns began to tear wide gaps 
in their lines. This frightful fire came 



from front and flank ; their line wai! 
enfiladed by the batteries on Round 
Top. Pettigrew' s men on the left be- 
gan to drift and lag behind under the 
weight of the Union fire, and Pickett 
was soon in the lead alone. When 
within a third of a mile of the Union 
front Pickett halted, coolly readjusted 
his lines and changing direction more 
toward the left, resumed his advance. 

Mad Rush of Federals. 

Wilcox and Perry did not change 
their direction, but kept straight on, 
and soon there was a considerable in- 
terval between them and Pickett on the 
latter' s right. Pickett first struck Gen- 
eral Hays's advanced troops, and then 
Gibbon's division. Some of them were 
slightly pressed back at first, but the 
Confederates were quickly overwhelmed 
by the mad rush of the charging Fed- 
erals. General Stannard's Vermont 
brigade changed front and attacked 
Pickett in flank, in the interval caused 
by the movement of Wilcox and Perry 
crowding Kemper's brigade back upon 
the centre and capturing many pris- 
oners. 

At the foot of the acclivity, led by 
Armistead, with his hat upon his sword 
point, the Confederates made a last feeble 
rush, and penetrated among some of the 
Union guns, But attacked on all sides 
by the men of Webb, Hall, Harrow 
and Stannard, they were driven back 
in utter rout. Garnett and Armistead 
were killed and Kemper wounded. 
Pickett lost in this ill-fated charge 3,000 
men in about an hour's time. He had 
no chance from the first. Only a por- 
tion of Pettigrew's command reached 
the front on the Confederate left; they 
were easily beaten off by Hays' well- 



aREAT BATTLE OF GET? YSBURG. 



posted troops who captured nearly 
1,500 prisoners. Wilcox on the ex- 
treme right, was met by Caldwell's di- 
vision in front, and the omnipresent 
Stannard in flank, and beaten 
easily, losing heavily. 

During the day a heavy cavalry 
battle had been fought for posses- 
sion of the Baltimore pike in the 
Union rear, between Stuart and 
Gregg, and Stuart's designs were 
thwarted, He drew off discom- 
fited. Thus, his troops beaten at 
all points, lyce's hopes were shat- 
tered. He ventured no more offen- 
sive movements. He expected a 
counter attack, but Meade was sat- 
isfied with the results already ob- 
tained, and awaited Lee's move- 
ments. That night Lee began to 
send his trains and wounded to the 
rear, while he held a fortified line 
along Seminary Ridge throughout 
the 4th to cover their removal. 

After nightfall on the 4th he 
quietly retired from Meade's front by 
the Fairfield road toward Hagerstown, 
and the invasion of Pennsylvania had 
come to an inglorious end within ten 
days of the time Longstreet and Hill 
crossed tne Potomac to the support of 
Ewell. 

This pivotal battle marked the turn- 
ing l^oint in the success of the Confed- 



erates wi h as gallant an army as ever 
faced an ^nemy, and under a general- 
ship uneq'^alled for strategy, dash and 




GENKRAI, ROBEJRT E. LEK— COMMANDER-IN- 
CHIEF OP CONFEDERATE ARM\. 

brilliancy. The remainder of the Civil 
War was merely the closing of the great 
tragedy. Other battles were fought 
and the brave Southerners continued 
the struggle with a courage and des- 
peration that challenged the admiration 
of the world, but their fate was sealed 
and their hopes vanished at the bloody, 
historic field of Gettysburg. 



CHAPTER XXV. 



Battle of Inkerman and Capture of the Malakoff. 



JarNKERM AN has been rightly called 
hI the "Soldiers' Victory," but it 
eJJL might be still more justly styled 
"The British Soldiers' Battle." 
It was from first to last — from its un- 
expected opening at early dawn, through 
all its changing episodes in the hours 
before noon and until midday brought 
the crisis, through attack and counter- 
attack, offence and defence, onslaught 
and recoil — one of the finest feats of 
arms accomplished by British troops. 
It takes rank with Agincourt, Rorke's 
Drift, the defence of Lucknow ; with 
New Orleans and Waterloo : equal to 
the best of these, overshadowing some, 
surpassing others ; in its way unique — 
a bright and shining tribute to the war- 
like courage of a nation already laurel- 
crowned. 

Many British battles have been won 
against great odds, under tremendous 
disadvantages ; but none have better 
shown inflexible, unconquerable tena- 
city than Inkerman. It was fighting 
for safety too ; had the British been de- 
feated at Inkerman their army would 
have been swept into the sea ; but these 
great issues were not fully realized by 
the rank-and-file. 

They knew they must win the day: 
that was their business, as it always is. 
But the fact that they were so near 
losing it made no great difference to 
them — all they thought of was to come 
to blows, to try conclusions with the 
enemy, to charge him, bayonet him, 
shoot him : always supremely indijffer- 
890 



ent to his vast numerical superiority 
and quite undismayed by his courage. 

So it was that the strange spectacle 
was seen of a handful resisting thou- 
sands, of a weak company charging 
through battalion columns, of stalwart 
soldiers engaging a crowd of the ene- 
my single-handed and putting them to 
rout. When ammunition ran short, as 
it often did in the deadliest episodes, 
the men tore up great stones and hurled 
them at the foe; a few scores of gun- 
ners, when hard pressed, fought on with 
swords, and rammers, and sponges, and 
sticks, even with fists — for the story of 
the Clitheroe bruiser who felled Rus- 
sian after Russian with knock-down 
blows is perfectly true. 

Men so eager for the conflict found 
officers as willing to lead them ; there 
was no hesitation, no waiting to re- 
form, to rejoin regiments ; any broken 
body gathered round any commander, 
all were ready to stand fast and die, go 
forward and die, do anything but re- 
tire. "What shall I do?" asked 
Colonel Egerton, at the head of his 
bare 200, when pitted against unknown 
numbers. " Fire a volley and charge !" 
at once answered the brigadier; and his 
aide-de-camp, young Hugh Clifford, 
sprang to the front to be in with the 
first fight. 

General Pennefather, at the end of 
five hours' fighting, when he had lost 
more than half his small force, did not 
abate his confidence one jot : if Lord 
Raglan now would only give him a few 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



391 



more men, he said, he would finish the 
battle out of hand and " lick the enemy 
to the devil." Waterloo was " hard 
pounding," as Wellington quietly re- 
marked afterwards, but it was nothing 
to Inkerman. 

A Slow Siege. 

The battle of Inkerman was brought 
about by the restored confidence that 
great and overwhelming reinforcements 
gave the Russian generals inside Se- 
bastopol. After the successful landing, 
the victory of the Alma, the unim- 
peded flank march to the south side of 
the still incomplete fortress, the allied 
English and French had achieved no 
fresh triumphs. Prudence had over- 
ruled the daring but not quite unwar- 
ranted counsels to go straight in against 
Sebastopol; an immediate attack was 
deemed too dangerous, the golden op- 
portunity passed, and it became neces- 
sary to sit down before the stronghold 
and reduce it by the slow processes of 
a siege. 

The allies were thus planted in a cor- 
ner of the Crimea, committed to the 
highland or upland of the Chersonese, 
as it was called, the only ground they 
could possibly occupy when attacking 
Sebastopol from the south side — ground 
that no one would have selected had 
choice been unfettered, for it was 
rugged, inhospitable, very extensive, 
and above all exposed on one flank 
right round, almost to the very rear. 
Balaclava, the British base of supply, 
at a distance of six miles from the front, 
lay open to attack by an enterprising 
enemy, and almost the whole length of 
road which connected it with the Brit- 
ish camp. 

How fully the Russians realized this, 



how nearly they overbore the weak re- 
sistance offered by the Turks who de- 
fended this vulnerable point, how nobly 
a handful of British cavalry spent itseF 
in beating back disaster is a well known 
story. 

Prince Mentschikofi", who commanded j 
the Russian forces in and about Sebas- 
topol, exultantly foresaw the complete 
annihilation of the allies. He believed 
that they were at the end of their tether. 
In his reports to St. Petersburg he de- 
clared that the enemy never dared now 
to venture out of his lines, his guns 
were silent, his infantry paralyzed, his 
cavalry did not exist. 

Great Russian Host. 

The Russians, on the other hand, 
were once more enormously in the as- 
cendant : troops had been pouring into 
Sebastopol continuously all through the 
month of October, 1854 5 ^ whole army 
corps had arrived from Odessa ; two 
other divisions were close at hand on 
the 2d of November, and by the 4th, 
the eve of the battle of Inkerman, the 
total of the land forces assembled in and 
around the fortress must have been 
quite 120,000 men. This total was just 
double that of the allies, including the 
Turks, available for all purposes, in- 
cluding the siege of a great fortress, 
which alone might claim the whole 
efforts of the army. 

No wonder, then, that Mentschikoff 
was full of confidence, that he counted 
upon an easy triumph, nothing less than 
sweeping the allies off" the upland into 
the sea. " The enemy," he wrote, " can- 
not effect his retreat without exposing 
himself to immense losses. Nothing 
can save him from a complete disaster. 
Future times, I am confident, will pre- 



392 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



serve the remembrance of the exemplary 
chastisement inflicted upon the pre- 
sumption of the allies." Two of the 
Czar's sons were hurried post-haste to 
the Crimea to stimulate the enthusiasm 
of the troops and witness their splendid 
triumph. 

Some inkling of the impending dis- 
aster — prematurely so called, as was 
soon to be proved — crept out and gave 
general uneasiness even at a distance 
from the theatre of war. Friends in 
Russia warned friends in England to 
anticipate terrible news. The great 
effort approaching was prepared under 
the direction of the Czar himself, and 
was of a nature and extent to deal an 
overv/helming blow. 

Another Battle at Hand. 

In the Crimea itself vague intelligence 
reached the allied commanders that a 
terrible struggle was near at hand. 
Reports of the reinforcements arriving, 
of the stir and activity within the for- 
tress, the repair of roads, the mending 
of bridges, all the indications that are 
plain as print to the experienced mili- 
tary intelligence, warned Lord Raglan 
and General Canrobert to be on the look- 
out for another momentous battle, for 
which, in truth, they were but badly 
prepared. 

Some idea of the disproportion be- 
tween the armies about to come into 
collision will rightly be given here, so 
that we realize at once how overmatched 
were the allies, how marvellous there- 
fore was their prolonged resistance and 
eventual triumph on that now historic 
5th of November, the Inkerman Sun- 
day which in British annals has eclipsed 
that other anniversary of the Gunpow- 
der plot. 



It has been said above that the Rus- 
sian forces totalled 120,000 in all. Of 
these rather more than half, or 70,000 
men, were actually present in the field. 
All took part in the action, but some only 
as covering forces or engaged in feints : 
these numbered some 30,000; the re- 
mainder, just 40,000, composed the at- 
tacking columns, and fought the battle 
of Inkerman. The whole allied strength 
that day upon the upland of the Cher- 
sonese was 65,000, but barely a quarter 
of these numbers could be or, as a mat- 
ter of fact, were used in the coming 
action. From first to last the total 
French and English forces on the ground 
were just 15,683 — half of each, but more 
exactly 7,464 English and 8,219 French 
— and of the latter 3,570 were actually 
engaged. There is no mistake or ex- 
aggeration in these figures, which are 
based on official returns on both sides. 

Few Against Many. 

It must, moreover, be carefully borne 
in mind that only a proportion, and a 
small proportion, of these 15,000 were 
on hand in the early stages of the fight. 
For hours the brunt of the battle fell 
upon the 2d division, which was barel}' 
3,000, although opposed to 40,000, and 
the reinforcements came to them in 
driblets slowly and affording but meagre 
assistance and relief It is from the ex- 
traordinary tenacity shown by British 
soldiers in their prolonged and indom- 
itable resistance against such tremend- 
ous odds that such great glory was 
achieved at Inkerman. 

The allied weakness, of which Lord 
Raglan was fully aware, was caused by 
the stress laid upon their forces by the 
siege operations and the need of pro- 
tecting their communications. The 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



39^ 



troops, taking them from west to east 
and so to the south and rear, covered a 
front which was twenty miles long. 
Before Sebastopol the French were on 
the left, the English on the right ; but 
General Canrobert, always anxious for 
the rear of his position, kept a large 
force on the heights above the Tcher- 
uaya valley, and the English perforce 
garrisoned and defended Balaclava. 

Defence Weakened. 
Hence on the right flank of the Brit- 
ish front, round about Inkerman as it 
came to be called (although the real site 
of old Inkerman is on the opposite side 
of the Tchernaya river), the defence 
was greatly impoverished, being limited 
in the first instance to a few weak bat- 
talions of the 2d division. Its immedi- 
ate support — none too close — was a 
brigade of the Light Division under 
General Codrington on the Victoria 
Ridge adjoining, but on the other side 
of a wide rough ravine; behind, and 
three-quarters of a mile oflf, was the 
brigade of Guards, twice that distance 
the 2d brigade (Buller's) of the Light 
Division ; the 4th and 3d divisions, 
fronting Sebastopol and more or less 
appropriated to the siege works, were 
two or three miles removed from the 
extreme right flank. 

A French army corps under Bosquet 
was, however, within the lesser distance, 
holding the eastern heights which gave 
General Canrobert so much concern. 
But the forces thus described made up 
the sum total of the allied armed strength , 
and every portion had its particular place 
and specified duties. None could well 
be withdrawn from any part without 
denuding it of troops or dangerously 
weakening the long defensive line. , 



There were, in fact, no reserves, no 
second line to call up in extreme emer- 
gency to stiffen and reinforce the first. 
The allies were fighting with their 
backs to the wall. Retreat was impos- 
sible because there were no fresh troops 
to interpose and cover it. 

Serious Situation. 
The weakness of the 2d division in 
such an isolated and exposed position 
had long been a source of serious mis- 
giving. Its commander. Sir DeLacy 
Evans, deemed his force — weakened, 
moreover, by constant outpost duty— 
to be perilously small. He called it 
"most serious." Sir George Brown, 
who commanded the Light Division, 
was equally solicitous. Lord Raglan, 
the general-in-chief, knew the dan- 
ger too ; he reported home that his 
men of the 2d division were well posted, 
"but there were not enough of them." 
But he was ever buoyant and hopeful, 
anticipating no great trouble, yet alive 
to his perils and fully prepared to meet 
them. " We liave plenty to think of,'' 
he wrote to the English War Minister, 
"and all I can say is that we will do 
our best." 

Strange to say, that best did not in- 
clude any artificial strengthening of 
the position by entrenchments. The 
ground was admirably suited for de- 
fence, and might have been made all 
but impregnable — or, at least, capable 
of withstanding even determined at- 
tacks. Earthworks would have gone 
far to redress the balance of numbers 
telling so heavily against the allies; 
but only one meager barrier was erected, 
and even this was destined to prove of 
inestimable value in the battle. 

The prompt use of the spade was not 



394 



INKERMAN ^ND THE MALAKOFF. 



then deemed an es.s'jntial part of the 
soldier's field training, and, as the 
opening of the trenches before Sebas- 
topol had entailed much labor of that 
kind, the troops were spared more of 
it, even although indispensably neces- 
sary as everyone now knows. 

Superior Numbers. 

The Russian general had not failed 
to detect the inherent defects in the 
British line or to note carefully its 
weakest point. Upon this he based 
his plan of operations. He meant to 
envelop and crush the exposed right 
flank by vastly superior numbers, while 
well-timed demonstrations that might 
be expanded into attacks should occupy 
the allied forces at other parts of the 
field. This simple and perfectly plausi- 
ble scheme was to be worked out as 
follows : 

Two great columns, making up a 
combined strength of 40,000 men, with 
135 guns, were to constitute the main, 
the most weighty, and as it came to 
pass, the only real attack. Both were 
drawn from the newly-arrived 4th or 
Dannenberg's Army Corps. One, call- 
ed the loth Russian Division, com- 
manded by General Soimonoflf, which 
had entered and was actually quartered 
within Sebastopol, was to take one 
flank, the left of the English position ; 
the other, under General Paulofl", the 
I ith division, still outside the fortress 
and lying north of the Tchernaya river, 
was to attack the English right. 

Soimonoflf' s force was strengthened 
by other regiments in the garrison, and 
its infantry strength was 19,000, his 
guns 38 in number. He was to issue 
from Sebastopol at a point between the 
Malakoflf Hill and the Little Redan, 



then follow the course of the Carenag,..? 
ravine, and to come out on the northern 
slopes of Mount Inkerman, where he 
was to join hands with Pauloff, who. 
marching from the heights of Inkerman 
on the far side of the Tchernaya, wa'^: 
to cross that river and the low swampy 
ground that margined its course by the 
bridge near its mouth. 

Expected Sweeping Victory. 

This general commanded 16,000 in- 
fantry and had with him 96 guns. His 
orders were to ascend the northern 
slopes of Mount Inkerman and push 
on vigorously till he met with Soimon- 
off". When thus combined the whole 
force of 40,000 (including artillerymen) 
was to come under the direction of the 
Army Corps commander. General Dan- 
nenberg, and his orders were to press 
forward and carry all before him. It 
was confidently expected that noth- 
ing could withstand him — that he would 
'•roll up" the weak opposition of the 
English right, beat all that he encoun- 
tered and sweep victoriously onward 
right past the Windmill Hill to the 
eastern heights in the rear, and within 
easy distance of Balaclava. 

Meanwhile, Prince Gortschakoflf, who 
now commanded the army hitherto 
known as Liprandi's, in the valley of 
the Tchernaya, and had under him a 
force of 22,000, with 88 guns, was to 
"contain" Bosquet — occupy his atten- 
tion, that is to say, by feints and false 
attacks upon his position, so that he 
should be held to these heights and 
unable to reinforce the English right. 

Later, when the main attack had 
prospered and Dannenberg's victorious 
troops were seen well to the south of 
Windmill Hill, Gortschakoflf 's demon- 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



395 



strations were to be converted into a 
real attack. He was to go up against 
the heights with all his force, drive 
back Bosquet, join hands with Dan- 
nenberg, and the Russians would then 
be in triumphant possession of the 
greater part of the Chersonese upland. 
After that the siege must be raised, the 
allies must be swept off the plateau, 
destroyed, taken prisoner, or hurried 
into disastrous flight upon their ships. 

To Move In Force. 

A third conditional operation was 
entrusted to the troops remaining in 
garrison, under the command of Gene- 
ral Moller. He was to closely " watch 
the progress of the battle," cover the 
right of the attacking troops with his 
artillery without attempting to reply 
to the fire of the allied siege-guns. 
Whenever confusion showed itself in 
the trenches, due to the great wave of 
victory setting from the eastward, he 
was to move out in force, attack and 
seize the siege-batteries. 

Capable military critics have not 
failed to condemn the foregoing plan of 
operations. It erred, in the main attack, 
by trusting too entirely to numbers, 
crowding great masses of men on 
ground not spacious enough to hold 
them. There was not sufficient room, 
indeed, upon the Russian battlefield for 
half the forces engaged. Moreover, 
this ground, imperfectly known to 
the men who held it and might have 
carefully studied it, was cut in two by 
a great ridge, which divided the two 
columns intended ^^o join forces, and 
prevented their cor-ibined action. 

General Dannenberg appears to have 
realized this diffirulty and wished his 
two generals, Soimonoflf and Pauloff, to 



act independently, the former directing 
his efforts against the Victoria Ridge, 
altogether to the westward of Mount 
Inkerman, and leaving the latter ample 
space to manoeuvre. But Dannenberg's 
wishes were not distinct orders, and 
Soimonoff, obeying Mentschikoff, the 
general-in-chief, held on to the original 
plan. 

Again, Gortschakoff's role condemn- 
ed him to play a waiting game, and 
give no effective help until that help 
was no longer urgently required. He 
was to do nothing, in fact, until the 
main attack had actually succeeded. 
The longer the enemy resisted, the 
longer he remained inactive. Had he 
exerted a stronger pressure, had his 
feints been pushed with more insistence, 
he would have paralyzed the movement 
of the French with Bosquet, and by 
the very direction of his attack weak- 
ened the English defence at Inkerman. 
" His advance was, however, left to 
depend upon a contingency that never 
occurred" — and while he waited for it 
his 22,000 men were of absolutely no 
use in the fight. 

Rough Battle Field. 

The whole surface of the field of bat- 
tle was thickly covered with brushwood 
and low coppice, amidst which crags 
and rocky boulders reared their heads. 
In some places the woods gathered into 
dense forest glades, and in others the 
ravines were steeply-scarped quarries 
difl&cult of access. 

Soimonoff started at 5 a. m., amid 
darkness and mist, which so favored 
his march that he reached Mount In- 
kerman unobserved, and then and there 
seizing its highest point. Shell Hill, he 
placed his guns in battery on the crest 



396 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF, 



quite unknown to the Britisli outposts. 
The night had been reported unusually- 
quiet, although some fancied they heard 



fore the alarm was raised. They were 
pressed back fighting, while the guns 
on Shell Hill opened a destructive fire. 







VIEW OF TOWN AND FORTREISS OF SEBASTOPOIv. 



the rumbling of distant wheels — the 
wheels, in fact, vf Pauloff's artillery. 
Just before dawn, too — it was Sunday 
morning — all the bells of Sebastopol 
rang out a joyous peal, not for worship, 
but to stimulate the courage of the pious 
Russian soldiery. 

But outpost duty in those days was 
imperfectly performed, and the enemy 
was on top of the British pickets be- 



General Pennefather, who was in tern 
porary command of the 2d division^ 
realized at once that serious events were 
at hand. It was not in his nature to 
retreat before the coming storm. He 
was a "fine fighter ; " in another rank 
of life he would have been in his ele- 
ment with a "bit of a twig" at Donny- 
brook Fair. "Whenever you see a 
head, hit it" was his favorite maxim in 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



3»> 



war ; and now, where a more cautious 
leader would have drawn oif and lined 
the Home Ridge in defensive battle, he 
thrust forward with all his meagre forces 
to meet the Russian attack. 

This daring system was greatly aided 
by the state of the atmosphere ; in the 
fog and mist no notion of the pitiful 
number of their opponents reached the 
Russians, and the handful of English 
forgot that they were unsupported and 
so few. Pennefather's plan, born of his 
fighting propensities and indomitable 
pluck, found favor with his superiors, 
for when presently Lord Raglan, the 
English commander-in-chief, came upon 
the ground, he did not attempt to inter- 
fere, but left the audacious Irishman 
the uninterrupted control of the fight. 

Russian Column Shattered. 

They were meagre indeed — these first 
English defenders of Mount Inkerman. 
Pennefather had of his own barely 3,000 
men all told, and only 500 men came 
up in the first instance to reinforce him. 
But he sent all he had dowR, in the 
brushwood out in front till it was filled 
with a slender line. Meanwhile Soim- 
onoff, waxing impatient and having all 
ready, was determined to begin without 
waiting for Pauloff's co-operation. His 
guns on Shell Hill had "prepared" his 
advance, and soon after 7 A. m. he sent 
three separate columns against the left 
of the British position on Home Ridge. 

The first of these, on the extreme 
right, under road column, as it was 
called, got a long way round, when it 
met a wing of the 47th under Fordyce 
and a Guards picket under Prince Ed- 
ward of Saxe-Weimar, before whom it 
turned tail ; the second column had no 
better fortune on the Miriakoflf spur; 



the third, following up the course of the 
MiriakofF glen, encountered a wing of 
the 49th under Grant, who at once gave 
the order to " fire a volley and charge." 
His counter-attack was delivered with 
such determination that it carried all 
before it ; the Russian column was 
fairly broken up and driven helter- 
skelter under the guns on Shell Hill. 

Smote Fiercely. 

Now Soimonoflf came on in person at 
the head of twelve battalions, nearly 
9,000 men. His aim was the centre 
and left centre of the allies, and for a 
time he made good progress. But the 
first supports, those from the Light 
Division, arriving, Pennefather at once 
used them against Soimonoff. He sent 
on the 88th Connaught Rangers, 400 of 
them who, feeling the whole weight of 
the attack, recoiled, and retreating left 
the three guns of Townshend's battery 
in the enemy's hands. Then the 77th 
under Egerton, but led also by the 
brigadier Buller, came up and caught 
Soimonofi"'s outside column — caught it 
and smote it so fiercely that it fled and 
was no more seen on the field. 

These Russians were 1,500 strong. 
Egerton had no more than 250, but he 
never faltered, and his men, answering 
like hounds to his cry, tore straight on 
at the run and smashed in with irre- 
sistible fury. There was an interval of 
raging turmoil in which the bayonets 
made fearful havoc ; then the Russians 
ran, Egerton pursuing at the charge to 
the foot of Shell Hill. About this time 
General Soimonoff was killed. Eger- 
ton' s action had wide-reaching conse- 
quences. Through it the abandoned 
three guns were recovered, the 88th ral- 
lied, the 77th themselves or their rem- 



^98' 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



nant held fast *for hours the ground it \ 
had secured. 

These combats disposed of about half 
the forces Soimonoff had put forward 
in this attack. The remainder had ad- 
vanced courageously against the allied 
centre by both sides of the post- road ; 
but they also were beaten back, partly 
by the fire of field guns, partly by the 
spirited charge of a couple of hundred 
men of the 44th under Bellairs. 

Russians Repulsed. 

Thus in less than an hour SoimonofF's 
great effort was repulsed; he himself 
was slain, and his men driven off the 
field. For this portion of the loth 
Russian division never regained cohe- 
sion as a formed military force. It was 
no mere defeat but an absolute over- 
throw, in which regiments melted away 
and the whole force was ruined. Many 
excuses have been offered for their 
want of success : the dense mist giving 
exaggerated value to the handful that 
faced them, they perhaps thought the 
enterprise too difficult. 

It is also certain that the English fire 
was murderously effective upon these 
compact columns of attack ; some were 
absolutely decimated, others lost nearly 
all their officers, and all were so shat- 
tered and disorganized that no part of 
them returned to the fight. They ought, 
nevertheless, to have done better ; with 
such greatly superior forces, backed 
up by the incessant fire of a formidable 
artillery, success would probably have 
awaited bolder and braver men. 

Meanwhile a portion of Pauloff's di- 
vision had arrived by a shorter and 
more direct road, while the rest had 
circled round after Soimonoff. Some 
of these people of Pauloff's were at 



once attracted by the Sandbag Battery, 
and, soon taking it from the sergeants' 
guard that held it, made this hollow 
vantage-ground their own. A mass of 
men, three great columns, supported 
this attack, and Pennefather sent Gen- 
eral Adams against them with the 41st 
Regiment. 

He went forward in extetided order 
with a wide front of fire, and the Rus- 
sians soon fell away ; those in the bat- 
tery evacuated it ; the columns support- 
ing broke and dropped piecemeal into 
the valley. In this splendid affair 500 
men disposed of 4,000. Again, at the 
Barrier, which the rest of Pauloff's 
men approached with great determina- 
tion, a small body, the wing of the 30th 
Regiment under Colonel Mauleverer, 
achieved an equal triumph — that of 
200 over 2,000. Here it was the British 
bayonet that told, for the men's fire- 
locks were soaking wet and the caps 
would not explode. 

Daring Bravery. 

But Mauleverer trusted to the cold 
steel. Officers leapt down daringly in 
among the Russians; men followed at 
the charge : the head of the leading 
column was struck with such impetus 
that it turned in hasty retreat, causing 
hopeless confusion in the columns be- 
hind, and all fled, a broken throng of 
fugitives, hundreds upon hundreds, 
chased by seven or eight score. 

This ended the first Russian on- 
.slaught. Half Soimonoff 's division was 
beaten out of sight ; 6,000 men were lost 
to Pauloff. At least 15,000 out of 25,- 
000 were "extirpated," as the Russians 
admit in their official accounts, and 
this by no superior generalship but by 
the dogged valor, the undismayed re- 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



39S 



sistance> of just 3,500 Englishmen. It 
was a good omen for the issue of the 
day's fighting, but the end was not yet, 
and a further terrible stress was still 
to be imposed upon the overmatched 
troops. 

Eager for Battle. 

Supports, such as they were, now be- 
gun to arrive. The alarm had spread 
across the upland rousing every soul, and 
in every camp near and far the assem- 
bly sounded, men rushed to arms, half- 
dressed, fasting, eager only to hurry 
into the fight. Some of the Light Divi- 
sion, as we have seen, had been already 
engaged. General Codrington with the 
rest was in battle array, holding the 
Victoria Ridge with scanty forces. The 
Guards' brigade, 1,200 men, under the 
Duke of Cambridge, was approaching, 
700 already close to the Home Ridge ; 
the 4th division under Sir George Cath- 
cart, 2,000 strong, was also near at hand. 
These, with the field-batteries, raised the 
reinforcements to a total of 4, 700 men. 

Two French battalions had been des- 
patched to support Pennefather, al- 
though from some misunderstanding 
they were not utilized, and Bosquet, 
who had come up with them, returned 
to the Eastern Heights, where he was 
still menaced by Gortschakoff. It was 
not until much later in the day that 
General Bosquet realized that the Rus- 
sians in front of him were only pre- 
tending to attack, and then he hurried 
with substantial forces to Mount Inker- 
man. But until then he allowed him- 
self to be tied, ineffectively to the 
wrong place, giving no assistance in 
the main fight and certain to be "rolled 
up" in his turn if that fight ended dis- 
astrously for the English. 



General Dannenberg had now as- 
sumed the chief command, and, un- 
daunted by the first failure, he set 
about organizing a fresh attack. He 
had at his disposal 19,000 fresh and un- 
touched troops : SoimonoflF's reserves 
and Pauloff's regiments which had 
come round by the lower road. The 
latter, 10,000 strong, were sent against 
the English centre and right, their first 
task being the recapture of the Sand- 
bag Battery. General Adams was still 
here with his 700 men of the 41st Re- 
giment, and he made a firm stand ; 
4,000 men attacked him again and 
again with far more courage and per- 
sistence than any Russian troops had 
yet shown ; and at last, still fighting 
inch by inch Adams fell back, leaving 
the battery in the enemy's hands. 

Taken and Re-taken. 

Now the Guards came up under the 
Duke of Cambridge, and replacing 
Adams, went forward with a rush and 
recovered it, only to find it a useless 
possession. It was presently vacated 
by one lot, re-entered by the Russians, 
recaptured by another lot, and then 
again the Russians, imagining it to be 
an essential feature in the allied de- 
fence, concentrated their force to again 
attack it. Once more they took it, 
once more the Guards returned, and 
with irresistible energy drove them out. 
Thus the tide of battle ebbed and flowed 
around this empty carcase, and to nei- 
ther side did its possession mean loss or 
gain. 

The 4th division, under Sir George 
Cathcart, had now arrived upon the 
ground. He had just 2,000 men, and 
of these four-fifths were speedily distri- 
buted in fragments to stiffen and s::p 



400 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



port Pennefather's fighting line just 
where he thought they were most re- 
quired. With the small residue, not 
400 men, Cathcart was ready for any 
adventure. There was a gap in the 
Bnglish line between Pennefather's 
right and the Guards struggling about 
the Sandbag Battery, and this opening 
Cathcart was desired to fill. The order 
came direct from Lord Raglan, who 
was now in the field ; but Cathcart 
thought fit to act otherwise, believing 
that there was an opening for a deci- 
sive flank attack. 

Rushed Like a Torrent. 

He meant to strike at the left of the 
Russians, and leaving his vantage 
ground above he descended the steep 
slopes with his 400 men. The offen- 
sive movement was taken up by the 
troops nearest him — Guards, 20th, 95th. 
All the men gathered about the Sandbag 
Battery rushed headlong like a torrent 
down the hillside, and following up 
this fancied advantage, jeopardized 
the battle. For the gap which Cath- 
cart had been ordered to occupy be- 
came filled by a heavy column of Rus 
sians, who took their enemy in reverse 
and cut them completely off". 

" I fear we are in a mess," said Cath- 
cart, taking in the situation; and al- 
mosT directly afterwards he was shot 
through the heart. Only by a desper- 
ate effort, a series of personal hand-to- 
hand combats fought by small units 
courageously led by junior officers, 
even by non-combatant doctors, did the 
English regain touch with their own 
people. They were aided, too, by the 
opportune advance of a French regi- 
ment, which took the interposing Rus- 
sians in flank and drove them off". But 



if this mad adventure of Cathcar'^.'s es- 
caped the most disastrous consequences, 
its eff"ect, nevertheless, was to still fur- 
ther break up and disseminate the al- 
ready weakened and half-spent forces of 
the allies. 

Forced Slowly Back. 

All this time, Dannenberg had been 
pressing hard upon the allied centre. 
Here his attacking column met first 
Mauleverer with his victorious army of 
the 30th, and forced them slowly and 
reluctantly back, but was itself repulsed 
by a fresh army of the Rifle Brigade and 
driven down into the Quarry. Thence it 
again emerged, reinforced, and moved 
by the right against the Home Ridge. 
It was in these advances that they pene- 
trated the gap just mentioned and got 
upon the rear of Cathcart and the 
Guards. 

But the westernmost columns were 
charged by a portion of the 4th divi- 
sion, the 2ist and 63d regiments, over- 
thrown and pursued ; while the Russian 
attack on the right of the Home Ridge 
was met by General Goldie with the 
20th and 57th, also of the 4th division. 
Both these regiments were notable 
fighters, with very glorious traditions: 
the "Minden yell" of the 20th had 
stricken fear into its enemies for more 
than a century, and the 57th " Die 
Hards" had gained that imperishable 
title of honor at Albuera. "Fifty- 
seventh, remember Albuera!" was a 
battle-cry that sent them with terrible 
fury into the Russian ranks, and these 
two gallant regiments hunted their 
game right down into the Quarry. 

Once more the most strenuous efforts 
of the enemy had failed, with what a 
cost of heroic lives history still proudly 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



401 



tells. Dannenberg, however, if dis- 
heartened was not yet hopeless. He 
knew that the allies were hard pressed ; 
if he himself had suffered so had they, 
and more severely. He had still 10,000 
men in hand; many of them, although 
once worsted, were still not disorgan- 
ized or disheartened, and his reserves 
—9,000 more — were still intact, while 
guns a hundred in number held the 
mastery from Shell Hill. 

Half were Lost. 

Of the English forces, never more 
than 5,000 strong, half had been de- 
stroyed or annulled. True, the French 
had come upon the ground with two 
battalions, 1,600 men ; but Bosquet, 
with the main part of his command, 
was still a long way behind. Dannen- 
berg resolved to make another and more 
determined attack upon the centre of 
the English position, aiming for that 
Home Ridge, as it was called, which 
was the inner and last line of the allied 
defence. 

The Russians came on with a strength 
of 6,000 assailants, formed, as before, 
in a dense column of attack. One led 
the van, the main trunk followed, 
flanked by the others, and all coming 
up out of the now memorable Quarry 
Ravine. Pennefather had some 500 or 
600 to hold the ridge, remnants of the 
55th, 95 th, and 77th regiments, and a 
French battalion of the ytli Leger, with 
a small detachment of Zonaves. 

These were very inadequate forces, 
and the Russians, pushing home with 
more heart than they had hitherto 
shown, crowned the crest and broke 
over the inner slopes of the ridge. The 
7th Leger had not much stomach for 
the fight, but were pushed on by the 
26 



Zouaves and the men v^f the 77th, still 
led by the intrepid E^erton, By this 
time the main trunk column of the 
enemy had swept over the Barrier at 
the head of the Quarry, and the small 
force of defenders retired sullenly be- 
hind the Home Ridge. 

Critical Moment. 

Now the position seemed in immi- 
nent danger, and this was, perhaps, the 
most critical period in the battle. But 
the advance of the Russians, although 
in overwhelming strength, was checked 
by another daring charge — that of a 
handful of the 55th (thirty, no more) 
under Colonel Danberry, who went 
headlong into the thick of one of the 
rearmost Russian battalions. This small 
body of heroes tore through the mass 
by sheer strength, as if it were a foot-ball 
Scrooge, using their bayonets and their 
butt-ends, even their fists, fighting 
desperately till they "cleft a path 
through the battalion from flank to 
flank, and came out at last in open 
air on the east of the great trunk 
column." 

The noise of tumult in the rear and 
the vague sense of discomfiture and de- 
feat shook the leading assailants, and 
the Russians first halted irresolute then 
turned and retired. At this time, too, 
one of the flanking columns, moving 
up on the Russian right, encountered 
the 2 1 St and 63d regiments, and was 
promptly charged and driven back by 
these regiments, which re-possessed 
themselves of the Barrier and held it. 
Then the Russian left column, worsted 
by British artillery and the French 7th 
Leger, also retired. 

It was now but little past 9 A.M., and 
as yet the battle, although going against 



402 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



the Russians, was still neither lost nor 
won. They still held the ascendant 
on Shell Hill, still had their reserves. 
Lord Raglan, on the other hand, could 
not draw upon a single man, and Bos- 
quet's main force was still a long way 
off. Now, too, the French got into 
some difficulty upon the right above 
the Sandbag Battery, and were in im- 
minent danger of defeat. Moreover, 
the Russians made a fresh effort against 
the Barrier, coming up once again out 
of the Quarry. The Barrier was held 
by the 21st and 63d, but the stress put 
upon them was great, and Pennefather 
sent on such scanty support as he could 
spare. Great slaughter ensued in this 
conflict. General Goldie, who was now 
in command of the 4th division, was 
killed, and other valuable officers. 

Allied Guns. 

The Russian artillery did deadly mis- 
chief, but now, by Lord Raglan's unerr- 
ing foresight, it was to be met and over- 
matched by the allied guns. At an 
earlier hour of the morning he had sent 
back to the Siege Park for a couple of 
eighteen-pounders, guns that in the 
enormous development of artillery sci- 
ence we should think nothing of nowa- 
days, but which at Inkerman were far 
superior to the Russian field-batteries. 
So eager were the gunners that these 
two famous eighteen-pounders were 
dragged up to the front with ' ' man har- 
ness,' ' by some hundred and fifty artil- 
lerymen and a crowd of eager officers. 

The guns were placed in a command- 
ing position and worked splendidly 
under the very eyes and with the warm 
approval of Lord Raglan. They soon 
established a superiority of fire and 
spread such havoc and confusion among 



the Russian batteries on Shell Hill that 
the power of the latter began to wane. 
Victory, so long in the balance, was at 
last inclining to the side of the allies. 

Issue in Danger. 

Still the battle was not won. If the 
Russians did not renew their attacks, 
they still held their ground ; and Bos- 
quet, coming up presently with his 
whole strength, made a false move 
which nearly jeopardized the issue. 
The French general, having with him 
3,000 infantry and 24 guns, " hankering 
after a flank attack," reached forward 
on the far right beyond the Sandbag 
Battery and the spurs adjoining. Here 
he fell among the enemy, found himself 
threatened to right and to left and in 
front, and, realizing his peril, hastily 
withdrew. Happily, the Russians did 
not seize the undoubted advantage that 
mere accident had brought them by 
Bosquet's injudicious and hazardous 
advance. Had they gathered strength 
for a fresh and vigorous onslaught upon 
the English right, they might perhaps 
have turned the scale against them. 

The French were clearly discomfited 
and out of heart for a time. Then as 
the Russians made no forward move, 
Bosquet regained confidence ; he threw 
forward his Zouaves and Algerines, and 
these active troops came upon some 
Russians which were slowly climbing 
the slopes, and hurled them down again 
in great disorder. Our old friends the 
6th and 7th French regiments, the earli- 
est on the field, advanced along the 
post-road towards the Barrier, where 
they were covered by the English. 
This, briefly told, was the sum total of 
the French performances at the battle 
of Inkerman. 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



405 



It is well known to all who study war 
that, when the crisis of a battle comes, 
victory is for him who has the best dis- 
posable reserve in hand. Of the forces 
now engaged the French alone were in 
this happy situation ; the English were 
all but exhausted. Lord Raglan, as 
has been said, had not a spare man. 
As for the Russians, Gortschakoff 's su- 
pineness had robbed his comrades of the 
assistance of 20,000 men, and the gen- 
eral-in-chief, Mentschikoff, although 
close at hand on the field, did not see fit 
to bring up the reinforcements from the 
garrison of the town. 

"What Can I Do?" 
But now Marshal Canrobert, never a 
daring leader, was moved to desist from 
the fight. When he learnt that the 
English were all but spent, he would 
do nothing more, although he had a 
very large force of all arms now up and 
well in hand. No arguments, no ap- 
peals of lyord Raglan's would move 
him. "What can I — what can I do?" 
he asked querulously; "the Russians 
are everywhere." Had it been left to 
the French, the field would have been 
abandoned to the Russians, who were 
still in possession of the greater part of 
Mount Inkerman, and the battle would 
have been practically drawn. 

On the other hand, a vigorous on- 
slaught by the still fresh and untouched 
French might have carried the Flagstaff 
bastion and led to the capture of Sebas- 
topol itself. But Canrobert was not the 
man to take so great a risk or jeopardize 
so many lives. It was left to Haines, 
who still held the Barrier, to move up 
against Shell Hill. Lord West sec- 
onded him in this bold endeavor, a 
young lieutenant of the 77th, Acton by 



name, also went on with a mere hand- 
ful, and Colonel Horsford came on in 
support with the remnant of the Rifle 
Brigade. All this time, too, Lord Rag- 
lan's i8-pounders were dealing death 
and destruction among the Russian bat- 
teries ; and at last Dannenberg, under 
stress of this "murderous fire" — they 
are his own words — decided to limber 
up his guns and retire his whole force. 
This, in fact, was done, and about i 
p. M. the Russians admitted defeat. 

Heavy Russian Losses. 

If in this grand contest the allies were 
greatly outnumbered by the Russians, 
the latter suffered the most, their losses 
being four times as great as those of the 
victors. They had 12,000 killed and 
wounded, a large proportion of them 
left dead upon the field, among them 
256 officers. The English lost 597 
killed, 39 of them ofiicers, and 3 general 
officers; 1,760 men and 91 officers 
wounded. The French lost 13 officers 
and 1 30 men killed and 36 officers and 
750 men wounded. 

These figures show plainly on whom 
the brunt of the fighting fell, and the 
enormous losses of the Russians were 
mainly due to the density of their col- 
umns of attack and the superiority of 
English musketry and artillery fire. A 
very large part of the English infantry 
at Inkerman were armed with the new- 
fangled Minie rifle, and what powerful 
aid was affi)rded by the two 1 8-pounder 
guns has been already shown in the 
course of the narrative. 

In this Crimean war the key to the 
situation was the renowned fortress of 
Sebastopol, and to capture this was the 
object of the allied armies of England, 
France and Turkey. These took up a 



404 



INKERMAN AND THE MALAKOFF. 



position near Balaclava, located south 
of Sebastopol, and began the siege of 
that vast fortress. The Russians made 
repeated attempts, with overwhelming 
masses of troops, to force the allied 
position, which led to the bloody bat- 
tle of Inkerman, already described. 

Two Main Outposts. 

There were two main keys or outposts 
to the fortresses, one being the Redan 
and the other the MalakoflP. These were 
provided with all the necessary means 
for a thorough defence. As the siege 
dragged on for many months the main 
efforts of the allied commanders finally 
were directed to closing in upon the 
defences of the town, and as a first step 
it was necessary to gait? possession of 
the various outworks and advanced 
posts. These were the White Works, 
the Mamelon, the Quarries, the Mala- 
koflf, and the Redan. It was on June 
the 6th that a fresh bombardment was 
undertaken in order to reduce them, 
both the English and French guns be- 
ing actively engaged — to the number of 
544. The Mamelon was soon crushed, 
the White Works greatly damaged, and 
only the Malakoflf was able to return 
the fire at the close of the day. 

The cannonade was continued all 
through next day and towards dusk. 
Bosquet sent forward two brigades, and 
took possession of the White Works 
without serious opposition, which dur- 
ing the night were incorporated with 
the French trenches. On that same 
evening, June 7th, about 5.30, three 
French columns moved out boldly to 
attack the Mamelon, headed by a brave 
colonel, Brancion, who was slain just 
as his men triumphantly crowned the 
pa-rapet Another column of Turcos 



took the works by the rear, and this 
combined attack was for a time per- 
fectly successful ; then the Russians, 
reinforced, made a counter-attack, re- 
took the Mamelon, held it for a time, 
and were in their turn again expelled. 
The entry of the French into this 
works was the signal for an attack upon 
the Quarries, and this tough job was 
entrusted to detachments of the 2d and 
Ivight Divisions, the whole under Colo- 
nel Shirley. These Quarries were soon 
carried, but, being at the rear, they were 
searched through and through by the 
enemy's guns, and proved untenable 
until the Russians came out and were 
mixed with the assailants. Then the 
fight rolled back and forward, the vic- 
tory now inclining to this side, now to 
that. In the end, however, when dawn 
broke, the whole of the works the 
allies had attacked remained in their 
hands. 

Awaiting Final Attack. 

This substantial triumph g/eatly 
elated the allies. All who were en- 
gaged in it hoped that a turn was ap- 
proaching in this wearisome siege, and 
impatiently awaited the final attack, 
which must now, surely, be soon made. 
This, indeed, was the fixed intention of 
the allied generals, and in the days fol- 
lowing the last-named captures, meas- 
ures were concerted to assault the inner 
and chief works of the town. 

Even now the Emperor Napoleon 
persisted in advising field-operations, 
and continued to telegraph orders to 
Pelissier, the French commander, to 
that effect. The sturdy French general 
protested, pleading how impossible it 
was for him to exercise his command 
*'at the end, sometimes paralyzing, of 



INKERMAN AND fHE MALAKOFF. 



405 



an electric wire" — and still went his 
own way. To the emperor's last per- 
emptory message he replied: "To- 
morrow, at daybreak, in concert with 
the English, I attack the Redan, the 
MalakofF, and their dependent batteries. 
I am full of hope.' ' 

Bad Generalship. 

Yet this great attack was foredoomed 
to failure. Everything went wrong, 
especially with the French commander- 
in-chief. It is now believed that Pelis- 
sier, although outwardly firm, was 
greatly harassed in mind b)- the con- 
tinual interference of the emperor. 
Whatever the reason, he made mistake 
upon mistake. In the first place, he 
removed Bosquet from the command of 
the troops that were to attack the Mala- 
koflf, and substituted a general but lately 
landed, and quite ignorant of the ground, 
which Bosquet knew, as the French 
say, ' ' as well as his own pocket.' ' 

In the second place, although it had 
been arranged with Lord Raglan that 
the attack should be preceded by a Iwo 
days' cannonade, the fire of the 17th of 
June was not resumed by the French on 
the fatal morning of the i8th, and Pelis- 
sier suddenly decided to attack at day- 
break without it. This, the anniversary 
of Waterloo, when two old foes now 
were to figlit side by side, had been 
chosen on purpose, and yet it was to be 
associated with disaster. The French 
columns intended to assault the Mala- 
kofF found themselves mixed up and 
confused in the trenches. It was a 
brilliant starlight night, and the Rus- 
sians, seeing them plainly, brought up 
all their strength to resist. 

The assailants, when they moved 
forward, encountered fierce opposition 



from dogged men posted behind works 
rapidly repaired, and the French pre- 
sently retreated with considerable loss. 
The same misfortune met the English, 
for Lord Raglan, although aware of the 
French failure, felt bound to also at- 
tack. His men never got near the 
Redan — they were swept away in hun- 
dreds, as they crossed the open, by a 
storm of grape. Their leaders were 
killed, General Campbell and gallant 
Lacy Yea, and the remnant fell back 
disheartened. 

Only at one point, down by the Creek 
batterv, that fiery leader Sir William 
Eyre had penetrated the defence and 
entered the town. But he was wounded 
himself, and the lodgment made was 
relinquished, failing proper support. 

Disaster Killed Hira. 

From this grievous disaster Lord 
Raglan, who was already in failing 
health, never recovered. The noble 
English soldier, who had long borne 
unmerited contumely in proud silence, 
content to do his duty to the utmost of 
his power, was now heartbroken at this 
defeat, and sinking gradually, he died 
ten days after the 1 8th of June. How 
greatly his fine character had impressed 
all who were joined with him in this 
chanceful campaign was shown by 
Pelissier's great grief at his death. The 
rugged, stern, intractable Frenchman 
had from the first evinced the highest 
respect and affection for his English 
colleague ; and it is said that when 
Lord Raglan was no more. General 
Pelissier came and "stood by his bed- 
side for upwards of an hour, crying 
like a child." 

But although Pelissier could yield 
thus to his generous emotions, he never 



i06 



inkErman and the malakoff. 



weakened on the business in hand. 
Defeat only redoubled his dogged de- 
termination to succeed in his own way. 
This indomitable attitude at last won 
him the respect of his hitherto hostile 
superiors, and even the Emperor Na- 
poleon, surrendered his beloved projects, 
admitted that now every effort must be 
concentrated on the siege. The affront 
of failure must now be wiped out — 
speedily, if possible, but at any rate 
surely, j 

Heaps of Dead. 

Progress was still slow, but still the 
force crept steadily forward, until it ap- 
proached in some places the very foot 
of the enemy's defences, while, without 
intermission, the war of weapons con- 
tinued. The English had established 
an overwhelming superiority of fire, 
and their guns worked frightful havoc 
in the garrison. "Losses!" said a 
young Russian officer who had accom- 
panied a flag of truce ; "you don't know 
what the word means. You should see 
our batteries : th e dead lie there in heaps 
and heaps." The Russians during the 
last bombardment lost from i,ooo to 
1,500 a day. 

Yet two more months passed, and the 
allies were still outside. Neither Pelis- 
sier, with his strong and masterful spirit, 
nor Sir James Simpson, Lord Raglan's 
successor — a much poorer creature — 
was disposed to risk failure again by 
another premature or ill-considered at- 
tack; and while they waited to make 
all sure, the enemy took his fate in both 
hands, and sought to relieve the nearly 
ruined fortress by one last great counter- 
stroke. 

The battle of the Tchernaya, or of 
Tractir Bridge, fought on the 15 th of 



August, was a despairing but most vig- 
orous attack upon the French right 
flank, where the newly arrived Italian 
— or, more exactly, Sardinian — allies 
were also posted. Thirty thousand 
Russians, under Generals Read and 
Liprandi, with a reserve of 19,000 more 
infantry, the whole supported by cav- 
alry and a numerous artillery, came on 
at daylight, but attacked too soon the 
heights held strongly by the French, and 
were driven back with great slaughter. 
The Sardinians also fought well, and 
some horse artillery also took part in 
the fight. 

Hope Abandoned. 

The outcome still tarried, but all 
hope of holding Sebastopol was at an 
end. Since the commencement of the 
Crimean campaign the Russians had 
lost many thousands of men in the 
fortress and in the field, and their con- 
dition was nearly desperate. Prepara- 
tions to evacuate the city were at last be 
gun — the great bridge of retreat across 
the harbor, barricades and obstacles in 
the streets and approaches. Yet Prince 
Gortschakoff still hesitated, and wished 
at the eleventh hour to prolong the de- 
fence in spite of the tremendous sacri- 
fice it would entail. 

But now, at last, opportunity was 
ripe ; the French most advanced trench 
was within five-and-twenty yards of the 
Malakoff, and the hour of attack was at 
hand. 

Once more, and for the last time, the 
guns re-opened fire and blazed away 
incessantly on the 6th and 7th of Sep- 
tember, doing, as usual, infinite injury, 
but in the early morning of the 8th the 
Russians stood ready, their reserves in 
hand, their guns loaded with grape. It 



INKERMAN AND THE MAlyAKOFF. 



40? 



was not Pelissier's intention to attack 
the Malakoff — the principal point — be- 
fore noon. He had observed that at 
that hour the old guards were relieved 
by the new, but that the one marched 
out of the works before the others re- 
placed. 

G-allant MacMahon. 

This was the plan which the French 
general hugged so closely to his heart 
that, as he himself put it, he would not 
whisper it to his pillow. The general 
control of the attack was placed under 
Bosquet, but the actual assault of the 
Malakoff was entrusted to MacMahon, 
that fine soldier who, years later, be- 
came President of the French Republic. 
Other troops filled in the line towards 
the Redan, where the English, under 
General Windham, were to come into 
play; but theirs was essentially an in- 
ferior and subsidiary role, for under no 
circumstances should they have attacked 
the Redan alone. Further subordinate 
moves were to be made by the French 
on Flagstafi" Bastion, while the Central 
Bastion was to be dealt with by the 
Sardinians. 

At noon exactly, MacMahon's first 
brigade crossed the open at a run, and 
found the Malakoff nearly empty; but 
then the Russian relief came up, and 
a fierce hand-to-hand stru^grle began. 
Every traverse, every coign of vantage, 
was taken and retaken, the Russians 
fighting with desperate courage ; and it 
was not until the French had broken 
into the work by its eastern face that 
victory inclined to their side. Still, the 
conflict was maintained imtil late in 
the afternoon, the Russians brin^ine 
up every reserve, but all to no purpose, 



and finally the tricolor waved over the 
Malakoff. The key to the fortress was 
won. 

Elsewhere fate had been adverse. The 
French columns on the left of the prin- 
cipal attack had not greatly prospered, 
while the English at the Redan had dis- 
tinctly failed. No doubt they were more 
or less doomed to failure from the first; 
for the Russians retiring from the Mal- 
akoff, swarmed into the Redan and soon 
filled it with vast numbers, while the 
English assailants at best were few. 
Yet they went up undaunted; many 
boldly climbed over the huge parapet, 
and for some time maintained a firm 
front inside. 

Fall of the Citadel. 

Unfortunately, support in sufficient 
strength was not promptly sent for- 
ward, and General Windham went back 
in search of them. This ill-advised step 
left the combatants, already hardly 
pressed, without the guidance of any 
leader of rank, and the unequal contest 
was not long maintained. Had the 
French, it is said, turned the Russian 
gnus they had captured in the Mala- 
koff on to the Redan, that work would 
have been quite untenable, so that its 
assault — except, perhaps, as a feint — 
was really unnecessary. 

Thus Sebastopol, or its principal 
part —smoking ruins and an empty shell 
— fell at last to the allied forces of 
French and English. Probably the 
assault upon the Malakoff, if it had not 
been successful, would not have been 
renewed; for everybody agreed that if 
the fortress was not taken before the 
second winter arrived, it would have 
been necessary to raise the siege. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 



Overthrow of the French Empire at Sedan. 




AR between France and Ger- 
many had been declared on 
19th July, 1870 ; and as early 
as August 2nd — so swiftly had been 
accomplished the work of mobilizing 
the hosts of the Fatherland as the 
" Watch on the Rhine "—King William 
of Prussia, now in his seventieth year, 
took command of the united German 
armies at Mayence. 

These armies were three in number — 
the First, on the right, consisting of 
60,000 men, commanded by General 
Steinmetz ; the Second, in the centre, 
194,000 strong, under the "Red Prince" 
(Frederick Charles); and the Third, on 
the left, 130,000, led by the Crown 
Prince of Prussia. An additional 100,- 
000 men, still at the disposal of any of 
these three hosts, brought up the Ger- 
man field-army to a figure of 484,000. 

Altogether, Germany now had under 
arms no fewer than i, 183,389 men, with 
250,373 horses ! Many of these, how- 
ever, had to remain behind in the 
Fatherland itself to man the fortresses 
and maintain communication with the 
front ; while others belonged to the cat- 
egory of supplementary troops, or re- 
serves, held ready to supply the gaps 
made in the fighting field-army of nearly 
half a million men, as above. 

The corresponding field array of the 
French was considerably inferior in 
point of numbers (336,500), equipment, 
organization, and discipline — in all re- 
spects, in fact, save that of the chasse- 
408 



pot rifle, which was decidedly superiof 
to the German needle-gun. The French, 
too, had a large number of mitrailleuses, 
or machine-guns, which ground out the 
bullets at what they deemed would be 
a terribly murderous rate. But these 
instruments of wholesale massacre did 
not, in the end, come up to the French 
expectation of them; while, on the 
other hand, the Prussian field-artillery 
proved itself to be far superior in all 
respects to that of the French. 

Finally, the Germans had a plan ; the 
French had none. Profound forethought 
was stamped on everything the Ger- 
mans did ; but, on the other hand, it 
was stamped on scarcely one single act 
of their enemies. The Germans had at 
their head a man of design, while the 
corresponding director of the French 
was only a " Man of Destiny." 

The first serious battle was fought on 
the 4th August at Wissemburg, when 
the Crown Prince fell upon the French 
and smote them hip and thigh, follow- 
ing up this victory, on the 6th, at 
Worth, when he again assaulted and 
tumbled back the overweening hosts of 
MacMahon in hideous ruin, partly on 
Strasburg, partly on Chalons. On this 
same day Steinmetz, on the right, car- 
ried the Spicheren Heights with terrific 
carnage, and all but annihilated Fros- 
sard's Corps. 

It was now the turn of the " Red 
Prince," in the centre, to strike in ; and 
this he did on the i6th, with glorious 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE- 



40» 



success, at Mars-la-Tour, when, against 
fivefold odds, he hung on to Marshal 
Bazaine's army and thwarted it in its 
attempt to escape from Metz. Two 
days later, the i8th, on very nearly the 
same ground, there was fought the 
bloodiest battle of all the war, that of 
Gravelotte-St. Privat — which resulted 
in the hurling back of Bazaine into 
Metz, there to be cooped up and belea- 
guered by Prince Frederick Charles and 
forced to capitulate within a couple of 
months. 

The Crisis Near. 

Moltke's immediate object was now 
to dispose of MacMahon, who had 
retired on Chalons— thence either to fall 
back on Paris, or march by a circuitous 
route to the relief of Bazaine. Which 
course he meant to adopt the German 
leaders did not as yet know, though it 
was of life-and-death importance that 
they should find out with the least pos- 
sible delay. Meanwhile the Crown 
Prince of Prussia with the Third Army 
continued his pursuit of MacMahon, as if 
towards Chalons ; and with him co- 
operated the Crown Prince of Saxony 
at the head of a Fourth Army (of the 
Meuse), which had now been created 
out of such of the "Red Prince's" 
forces (First and Second Armies) as 
were not required for the investment of 
Metz. 

For several days the pursuing Ger- 
mans continued their rapid march to 
the west, but on the 25th, word reached 
Moltke, the real directing head of the 
campaign, that McMahon in hot haste 
had evacuated the camp at Chalons, 
and ■ marched to the north-west on 
Rheims, with the apparent intention of 
doubling back on Metz. Meanwhile, 



until his intention should become un- 
mistakably plain, the German leaders 
did no more than give a right half-front 
direction to the enormous host of about 
200,000 men, which, on an irregular 
frontage of nearly fifty miles, was 
sweeping forward to the west, Paris- 
wards. 

For three more days this altered 
movement was continued, and then 
" Right-hand wheel ! " again resounded 
all along the enormous line, there being 
now executed by the German armies 
one of the grandest feats of strategical 
combination that had ever been per- 
formed. The German cavalry had al- 
ready done wonders of scouting, but it 
was believed that Moltke's knowledge 
of the altered movements of MacMahon 
was now mainly derived from Paris 
telegrams to a London newspaper, 
which were promptly re-communicated, 
by way of Berlin, to the German head- 
quarters — a proof of how the revelations 
of the war-correspondent — whom Lord 
Woolsey once denounced as the "curse 
of modern armies" — may sometimes 
affect the whole course of a campaign. 

On the Double Quick. 
Not long was it now before the heads 
of the German columns were within 
striking distance of MacMahon, who 
was hastening eastward to cross the 
Meuse in the direction of Metz ; but 
his movement became ever more flurried 
in proportion to the swiftness where- 
with the Germans deployed their armies 
on a frontage parallel to his flank line 
of march. Alternately obeying his 
own military instincts and the political 
orders from Paris, MacMahon dodged 
and doubled in the basin of the Meuse 
like a breathless and bewildered hare. 



410 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



On the 30th of August an action at 
Beaumont proved to the French the 
jtter hopelessness of their attempting 
to pursue their Metz-ward march. As 
^he battle oj Mars-la-Tour had com- 




WII^LIAM I. — EMPEROR OF GERMANY. 

pelled Bazaine to relinquish his plan of 
reaching Verden and to fight for his 
life with his back to Metz, so the victory 
of Beaumont proved to MacMahon that 
his only resource left was to abandon 
the attempt to reach the virgin fortress 
on the Moselle, and concentrate his de- 
moralized and rabble army around the 
frontier stronghold of Sedan. 

As Sedan had been the birthplace of 
one of the greatest of French marshals, 



Turenne, who had unrighteously seized 
Strasburg and the left bank of the 
Rhine for France, and been the scourge 
of Germany, it was peculiarly fitting 
that it should now become the scene of 
the battle which wa= 
to restore Alsace-Lor 
raine to the Father- 
land, and destroy the 
Continental supremacy 
of the Gauls. 

Standing on the 
right bank of the 
Meuse, in a projecting 
angle between I/Uxem- 
burg and Belgian ter- 
ritory, the fortressed 
old town of Sedan is 
surrounded by mea- 
dows, gardens, culti- 
vated fields, ravines, 
and wet-ditches ; while 
the citadel, or castle, 
rises on a clifi"-like 
eminence to the south- 
west of the place. 
Away in the distance 
towards the Belgian 
.. frontier stretch the 
x^'' Ardennes — that ver- 
dant forest of Arden 
in which Touchstone 
jested and Orlando 
loved, but which was now to become 
the scene of a great tragedy — of one of 
the most crushing disasters that ever 
befell a mighty nation. 

In retiring on Sedan, MacMahon had 
not intended to oflfer battle there, but 
simply to give his troops a short rest, 
of which they stood so much in need, 
and provide them with food and • am- 
munition. These troops were worn out 
with their efforts by day and night and 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



411 



continuous rain ; while their apparently 
aimless marching to and fro had under- 
mined fheir confidence in their leaders, 
and a series of defeats had shaken their 
own self-trust. Thousands of fugitives, 
crying for bread, crowded round the 
wagons as they made their way to the 
little fortress which had thus so sud 
denly become the goal of a vast army. 

Mouse in the Trap. 

On the 31st of August, after making 
all his strategic preparations, and tak- 
ing a general survey of the situation, 
Moltke quietly remarked with a 
chuckle : " The trap is now closed, 
and the mouse is in it." That night 
headquarters were at Vendresse, a town- 
let about fourteen miles to the south of 
Sedan ; and early on the morning of 
the 1st of September, King William 
and his brilliant suite of generals, 
princes, and foreign officers were up 
and away to the hill-slope of Fresnois, 
which commands a view of the town 
and valley of Sedan as a box on the 
grand tiers of an opera does that of the 
stage. Bismarck, Moltke, and Roon — 
the king's mighty men of wisdom and 
valor — were also in his majesty's suite. 
"Why," remarked a Priissian soldier 
on seeing this brilliant assemblage take 
up its position on the brow of the hill 
and produce its field-glasses, "why, all 
this is just the same as at our autumn 
manoeuvres ! " 

The morning had broken in a thick 
fog, under cover of which the Germans 
had marched up to their various posi- 
tions, some of the columns having 
moved off at midnight ; and by the 
time King William had taken his stand 
on the Fresnois height, a little to the 
east of where his son, the Crown Prince, 



had similarly posted himself in order to 
direct the movements of the Third 
Army, the hot September sun had 
raised the curtain of the mist and dis- 
closed the progress which had already 
been made by the stupendous battle 
drama. 

This had been opened by the Bava- 
rianSj under Von der Tann, who, cross- 
ing the Meuse on pontoons, advanced 
to attack the village of Bazeilles, a sub- 
urb of Sedan, outside the fortifications 
on the south-east. The Bavarians had 
already shelled this suburb on the pre- 
vious evening so severely that pillars 
of flame and smoke shot up into the 
air during the night. In no other battle 
of the war was such fighting ferocity 
shown as in this hand-to-hand struggle 
for Bazeilles. For the Bavarians were 
met with such stubborn resistance on 
the part of the French marine infantry 
posted there, that they were twice com- 
pelled to abandon their hold on that 
place by vehement counter-assaults. 

Women in the Fight. 

The inhabitants of the village, too— 
women as well as men — joined in its 
defence by firing out of the houses and 
cellars on the Bavarians as they pressed 
onward, and by perpetrating most re- 
volting barbarities on the wounded 
Germans left behind when their com- 
rades had repeatedly to retreat. The 
Bavarians, on their part, were so dread- 
fully embittered and enraged by these 
things that they gave no quarter, act- 
ing with relentless rigor towards all the 
inhabitants found with arms in their 
hands or caught in the act of inflicting 
cruelties on the wounded. 

The struggle for the village became 
one of mntual annihilation, Hou.se by 



412 



OVERTHROW Oh THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



house and street by street had to be 
stormed and taken by the Bavarians, 
and the only way of ejecting the enemy 
from some of these massively built and 
strongly garrisoned buildings was by 




NAPOI<EON III. — EMPEROR OF FRANCE 

employing pioneers to breach the walls 
in the rear or from the side streets and 
throw in lighted torches. Notwith- 
standing all the desperate bravery of 
the Bavarians, the battle fluctuated for 
nearly six hours in the streets of Baze- 
illes, fresh troops, or freshly rallied 
ones, being constantly thrown by both 
sides into the seething fight. It was not 
till about lo A. M. that the Bavarians 
had acquired full possession of the 
villa-"-'* itself — now reduced to mere 
-tcaos of ruins ; but as the combat died 



away in the streets it was continued 
with equal desperation in the adjacent 
gardens on the north, where the French 
made a fresh stand, defending their 
ground with the most admirable valor. 
Bazeilles was certainly the 
scene of some of the most shock- 
ing atrocities which had been 
perpetrated by European soldiers 
since the siege and sack of Bada- 
joz by the victorious troops of 
Wellington, and the storming of 
Lucknow by the infuriated High- 
landers of Sir Colin Campbell. 
But it must be remembered that 
in all three cases the blood of the 
assailants had been roused to 
almost tiger-heat by barbarous 
provocation from the other side. 
Simultaneously with the san- 
guinary struggle for Bazeilles^ 
the battle had also been devel- 
oping at other points. Advanc- 
ing on the right of the Bavari- 
ans the Crown Prince of Saxony 
— afterwards King Albert — 
pushed forward towards Givonne 
with intent to complete the en- 
vironment of the French on this 
side. In order to facilitate theii 
marching, the Saxon soldiers had 
been ordered to lay aside their knapsacks, 
and by great eflforts they succeeded in 
reaching their appointed section of the 
ring of investment early in the day, tak 
ing the enemy completely by surprise, 
and hurling them back in confusion both 
at La Moncelle and Daigny. At the lat- 
ter place the French, soon after 7 A. m., 
made two offensive sallies with their 
renowned Zouaves and dreaded Turcos 
belonging to the ist Corps, but were 
beaten back by a crushing artillery and 
needle-gun fire. 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



415 



For some time the scales of battle 
hung uncertain on this portion of the 
field, but reinforcements coming up to 
the Saxons, the latter made an impetu- 
ous push across the valley, capturing 
three guns and three mitrailleuses from 
the French after half an hour's street- 
fighting in the village (Daigny), which 
was now finally wrested from the en- 
emy. Soon after this the Saxon right 
was rendered secure by the advance of 
the Prussian guards, under Prince Au- 
gust of Wurtemburg, who had made a 
wide detour to reach their objective, 
Givonne. 

The French Scattered. 

A considerable body of French cav- 
alry and numerous trains were seen by 
the Guards on the opposite side of the 
valley. These ofiered the corps artillery 
of the Guards an immediate target for 
its fire ; and scarcely had the first shells 
fallen among the French columns when 
the entire mass scattered in all direc- 
tions in the greatest confusion, leaving 
everywhere traces of a complete panic. 
The cavalry of the Guard was sent by a 
detour to the right, to bar the road to 
Belgium, and also establish touch with 
the Crown Prince's (Third) army, which 
had been pushed round on the German 
left. 

At Givonne the Guards, at a great 
loss, stormed and captured seven guns 
and three mitrailleuses, whose gunners 
were all killed or made prisoners. Beat- 
en out of Daigny and Givonne, the 
French hereabouts fled in a disorderly 
crowd into the woods, or fell back upon 
the centre, which they incommoded and 
discouraged by their precipitate appear- 
ance on a part of the field where they 
were not wanted. Shortly after, the 



junction between the Prussian Guards 
and the Crown Prince was accom- 
plished, and the ring was now complete. 
Successes equal to those at Daigny 
and Givonne were obtained by the Ger- 
mans in other directions, and the French 
centre began to recede, though the con- 
test was still prolonged with desperate 
tenacity, the French fiercely disputing 
every hill-slope and point of vantage, 
and inflicting as well as sustaining tre- 
mendous losses. 

Stubborn Resistance. 

Meanwhile the French right had been 
hotly engaged. A railway bridge which 
crosses the Meuse near Le Dancourt had 
been broken down by MacMahon, but 
in the early morning the Crown Prince 
had thrown some of his troops across the 
river on pontoons, and was thus enabled 
to plant his batteries on the crest of a 
hill which overlooks Floing and the 
surrounding country. The French, sud- 
denly attacked in the rear, were more 
than astonished at the position in which 
they now found themselves ; but front- 
ing up towards their assailants with all 
their available strength, they main- 
tained a prolonged resistance. 

Their musketry fire was poured in 
with such deadliness and determination, 
that it was heard even above the deeper 
notes of the mitrailleuse, now playing 
with terrible effect on the Germans. 
General Sheridan said he had never 
heard so well -sustained and long-contin- 
ued a small-arm fire. 

By noon, however, the Prussian bat- 
tery on the slope above the broken 
bridge over the Meuse, above La Vil- 
ette, had silenced two French batteries 
near Floing, and now the enemy were 
compelled to retire from the positio>v 



414 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



About half-past twelve large numbers 
of retreating French were seen on the 
hill between Floing and Sedan, their 
ranks shelled by a Prussian battery in 
front of St. Menges. 

Fierce Assaults. 

The Germans now advanced and 
seized Floing in the valley, holding it 
against all attempts to dislodge them ; 
but it still remained for them to scale 
the heights beyond, from the entrenched 
slopes and vineyards of which they were 
exposed to a murderous fire. Here the 
French had all the advantages of posi- 
tion, and the Germans could make but 
little headway in spite of their repeated 
efforts, so that at this point the battle 
came to something like a standstill for 
nearly an hour and a half, the time 
being consumed in assaults and counter- 
assaults. 

At last, on receiving reinforcements, 
which brought up their strength in this 
portion of the field to seventeen battal- 
ions, the Germans once more advanced 
to the attack, and the French saw that 
something desperate must be done if 
their position was to be saved. Hith- 
erto the French cavalry had done little 
or nothing, but now was their chance. 
Emerging from the Bois de la Garenne 
at the head of the 4th Reserve Cavalry 
Division, consisting of four Scots-Grey- 
ilooking regiments of Chasseurs d'Af- 
rique and two regln:ents of Lancers, 
General Marguerite prepared to charge 
down upon the Germans. But he him- 
self was severely wounded before his 
imposing mass of picturesque horsemen 
had fairly got in motion, and then the 
command devolved on General Gallifet, 
one of the bravest and most brilliant cav- 
alry ofiicers in all France — inall Europe. 



Placing himself at the head of his 
magnificent array of horsemen, Gallifet 
now launched them against the seven- 
teen battalions of the Germans. Thun- 
dering down the slope, the shining 
squadrons broke through the line of 
skirmishers scattering them like chaff". 
But then, in the further pursuit of their 
stormful career, they were received by 
the deployed battalions in front and 
flank with such a murderous fire of 
musketry, supplemented by hurricanes 
of grape-shot from the batteries, as 
made them reel and roll to the ground 
— man and horse — in struggling, con- 
vulsive heaps. Nowhere throughout 
the war was the terrible pageantry of 
battle so picturesquely displayed as now 
on these sacrificial slopes of Sedan, 
when the finest and fairest chivalry of 
France was broken and shivered by 
bullet and bayonet as a furious wave is 
shattered into spray by an opposing rock. 

A Field of Slaughter. 

Supported by Bonnemain's division 
of four Cuirassier regiments, "these at- 
tacks," wrote Moltke, "were repeated 
by the French again and again, and 
the murderous turmoil lasted for half 
an hour, with steadily diminishing suc- 
cess for the French. The infantry vol- 
leys fired at short range strewed the 
whole field with dead and wounded. 
Many fell into the quarries or over the 
steep precipices, a few may have escaped 
by swimming the Meuse, and scarcely 
more than half of these brave troops 
were left to return to the protection of 
the fortress. ' ' 

The scene was well described by an 
eye-witness, Mr. Archibald Forbes: — 
"At a gallop through the ragged in- 
tervals in the confused masses of the in- 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



lib 



faiitry came dashing the Chasseurs 
d'Afrique. The squadrons halted, 
fronted, and then wheeled into line, at 
a pace and with a regularity which 
would have done them credit in the 
Champ de Mars, and did them double 
credit executed as was the evolution 
under a warm fire. That fire, as one 
could tell by the dying away of the 
smoke-jets, ceased all of a sudden, as if 
the trumpets which rang out the 
Charge !' for the Chasseurs had sounded 
also the ' Cease firing!' for the German 
artillery and infantry. Not a needle- 
gun gave fire as the splendid horsemen 
crashed down the gentle slope with the 
velocity of an avalanche. 

Grand Cavalry Charge, 
** I have seen not a few cavalry 
charges, but I never saw a finer one, 
whether from a spectator's or an adju- 
tant's point of view, than this one of 
the Chasseurs d'Afrique. It was des- 
tined to a sudden arrestment, and that 
without the ceremony of the trumpets 
sounding the 'Halt.' The horsemen 
and the footmen might have seen the 
color of each others' moustaches (to 
use Havelock's favorite phrase), when 
along the line of the latter there flashed 
out a sudden, simultaneous streak of fire. 
" Like thunder- claps sounding over 
the din of a hurricane, rose the mea- 
sured crash of the battery guns, and 
the cloud of white smoke drifted away 
towards the Chasseurs, enveloping them 
for the moment from one's siglit. When 
it blew away, there was visible a line 
of bright uniforms and grey horses 
struggling prostrate among the potato 
drills, or lying still in death. Only a 
handful of all the gallant show of five i 
uinutes before were galloping back- i 



ward up the slope, ler.ying tokens at 
intervals of their progress as they re- 
treated. So thorough a destruction by 
what may be called a single volley pro- 
bably the oldest soldier now alive never 
witnessed." 

The French Hurled Back. 

The French had played their last 
card. They had endeavored to give 
the tide o^ battle a favorable turn by 
sacrificing their cavalry, but in vain. 
The Germans now stormed and captured 
the heights of Floing and Cazal, and 
from this time the battle became little 
more than a mere farce. The French 
were thoroughly disheartened, and ra. 
pidly becoming an undisciplined rabble. 
Hundreds and thousands of them al- 
lowed themselves to be taken prisoners; 
auimunition-wagons were exploding in 
their midst, while the German artillery 
were ever contracting their murderous 
fire, and walls of bayonets closed every 
issue. The fugitive troopers, rushing 
about in search of cover, increased the 
frightful confusion which began to pre- 
vail throughout the circumscribed space 
in which the French army had been 
cooped up. 

Still, from the German point of view, 
a decisive blow was imperative, so that 
the results of the mighty battle might 
be secured without a doubt. With this 
in view, the Prussian Guards and thfc 
Saxons from Givonne quarter were 
launched against the Bois de laGarenne, 
which had become the last refuge of 
the battered and broken French; and 
these were soon driven back from every 
point, with the loss of many guns and 
prisoners — back on the fortress of Se- 
dan in wild turmoil and disorganized 
flight. 



416 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



It is to the inside of this fortress that 
the scene must now change, in order 
that we may pick up and follow what 
may be called the personal thread of 
the great battle-drama, of which we 
have but given the leading episodes. 
For it is only at this point that the bat- 
tle-drama began to enter its most inter- 
esting, because most surprising phase. 

Brave Marshal Wounded. 

Marshal MacMahon, the French com- 
mander-in-chief, had been in the saddle 
as early as 5 a. m. When riding along 
the high ground above La Moncelle he 
was severely wounded in the thigh by 
the fragment of a shell, and then he 
nominated Ducrot his successor in com- 
mand. By 8 o'clock the latter was ex- 
ercising this command, in virtue of 
which he had ordered a retreat west- 
ward to Mezieres ; but presently he was 
superseded by General de Wimpflfen, 
who had but just arrived from Algeria, 
and who hastened to countermand the 
retreat ,on Mezieres in favor of an at- 
tempt to break out in the opposite di- 
rection towards Carignan. This chaos 
of commanders and confusion of plans 
proved fatal to the distracted French, 
who now began to see that there was 
no hope for them. 

When riding out in the direction of 
the hardest fighting, Napoleon had 
met the wounded Marshal being brought 
in on a stretcher. The unfortunate 
Emperor mooned about the field for 
hours under fire, but he had no influ- 
ence whatever on the conduct of the 
battle. He had already almost ceased 
to be Emperor in the eyes of his gen- 
erals, and even of his soldiers. De 
Wimpffen sent a letter begging his im- 
perial master " to place himself in the 



midst of his troops, who could be relied 
on to force a passage through tlie Ger- 
man lines;" but to this exhortation his 
Majesty vouchsafed no reply. 

White Flag Goes Up. 

Eventually he returned into the town 
and, already showing the white feather, 
gave orders for the hoisting of the white 
flag. Up flew this white flag as a re- 
quest to the Germans to suspend their 
infernal fire ; but this signal of distress 
had not long fluttered aloft when it was 
indignantly cut down by General Faure, 
chief-of-staff" to the wounded MacMa- 
hon, acting on his own responsibility 
alone. For some time longer the use- 
less slaughter went on, and then Na- 
poleon made another attempt to sue for 
mercy. 

" Why does this useless struggle go 
on?" he said to Lebrun, who entered 
the presence of his Majesty shortly be- 
fore 3 P. M. "An hour ago or more I 
bade the white flag be displaved in order 
to sue for an armistice '" 

Lebrun explained that, in addition to 
the flying of the white flag, there were 
other formalities to be observed in such 
a case — the signing of a letter by the 
commander-in-chief, and the sending of 
it by an officer accompanied by a trum- 
peter and a flag of truce. 

These things being seen to, Lebrun 
now repaired to where Wimpffen was 
rallying some troops for an assault on 
the Germans in Balan, near Bazeilles; 
and on seeing Lebrun approach with all 
his paraphernalia for a parley, the angry 
commander-in-chief shouted: "No ca- 
pitulation ! Drop that rag ! I mean to 
fiofht on !" and forthwith he started for 
Balan, carrying Lebrun with him into 
the fray. 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



417 



Meanwhile Ducrot, who had been 
fighting hard about the Bois de la Ga- 
renne, in the desperate attempt to retard 
the contraction of the German circle of 
fire and steel, resolved about this time 
to pass through Se- 
dan and join in Wim- 
pflfen's proposed at- 
tempt to cut a way 
out towards Carig- 
nan. -What he saw 
in the interior of the 
town may be de- 
scribed almost in his 
own words. 

The streets, the 
open places, the gates 
were blocked up by 
wagons, guns, and 
the luggage and de- 
bris of a routed army. 
Bands of soldiers 
without arms, with- 
out packs, were rush- 
ing about, throwing 
themselves into the 
churches or breaking 
into private houses. 
Many unfortunate 
men were trampled 
under foot. The few 
soldiers who istill pre- 
served a remnant of 
energy seemed to be 
expending it in ac- 
cusations and curses. 
" We have been be- 
trayed," they cried ; 
sold by traitors and cowards." 

Nothing could be done with such 
men, and Ducrot, desisting from his in- 
tention to join De Wimpifen, hastened 
to seek out the Emperor. The air was 
all on fire; shells fell on roofs, and struck 
27 Y. P. H. W. 



masses of masonry, which crushed down 
on the pavements. " I cannot under- 
stand," said the Emperor, "why the 
enemy continues his fire. I have or- 
dered the white flag to be hoisted. I 




MARSHAL MACMAHON — FRENCH COMMANDER AT THE 
BATTLE OF SEDAN. 



we have been 



hope to obtain an interview with the 
King of Prussia, and may succeed in 
getting advantageous terms for the 
army." 

While the Emperor and Ducrot were 
thus conversing, the German cannon- 
ad*^ increased io deadly violence. Files 



418 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



burst out ; women, children and wound- 
ed were destroyed, and the air was 
filled with shrieks, curses and groans. 

"It is absolutely necessary to stop 
this firing," at last exclaimed the Em- 
peror, in a state of pallid perturbation. 
" Here, write this : 'The flag of truce 
having been displayed, negotiations are 
about to be opened with the enemy. 
The firing must cease all along the 
line.' Now sign it !" 

" Oh, no, sire," replied Ducrot; "I 
cannot sign. By what right could I do 
so ? General Wimpffen is in chief com- 
mand." 

"Yes," rejoined the Emperor; but I 
know not where General Wimp- 
ffen is to be found. Someone must 
sign !" 

"Let his chief-of-staff do so," sug- 
gested Ducrot ; " or General Douay." 

"Yes," said the limperor; "let the 
chief-of-staff sign the order." 

Disgraceful Altercation. 
But what became of this order is nov 
exactly known. All that is known is, 
that the brave Wimpffen scorned even to 
open the Emperor's letter, calling upon 
his Majesty instead to come and help 
in cutting a way out ; that the Emperor 
did not respond to this appeal ; that 
Wimpffen, failing in his gallant attempt 
on Balan for want of proper support, 
then retired to Sedan, and indignantly 
sent in his resignation to the Emperor ; 
that then, in the presence of his Majesty, 
there was a scene of violent altercation 
between Wimpffen and Ducrot, in the 
course of which it was believed that 
blows were actually exchanged ; and 
that finally Napoleon brought Wim- 
pffen to understand that, having com- 
manded during the battle it was his 



duty not to desert his post in circum- 
stances so critical. 

Furious Artillery Fire. 

Let the scene now again shift to the 
hill-top of Fresnois, where King Wil- 
liam and his suite were viewing, as 
from the dress-circle of a theatre, the 
course of the awful battle-drama in the 
town and valley below. The first white 
flag run up by order of Napoleon had 
not been noticed by the Germans, 
and thinking thus that the French 
meant to fight it out to the bitter end, 
the King, between 4 and 5 P. M., ordered 
the whole available artillery to concen- 
trate a crushing fire on Sedan, crowded 
as it was with fugitives and troops, so 
as to bring the enemy to their senses as 
soon as possible, no matter by what 
amount of carnage, while at the same 
time, under cover of this cannonade, 
a Bavarian force prepared to storm the 
Torcy Gate. 

The batteries opened fire with fearful 
effect, and in a short time Sedan seemed 
to be in flames. This was the cannon- 
ade which had burst out during the 
Emperor's conversation with Ducrot, 
making his Majesty once more give 
orders for the hoisting of the white 
flag ; and no sooner was it at length 
seen flying from the citadel than the 
German fire at once ceased, when the 
King despatched Colonel Bronsart von 
Schellendorff, of his staff, to ride down 
into Sedan under a flag of truce and 
summon the garrison to surrender. 

Penetrating into the town, and ask- 
ing for the commander-in-chief, this 
ofiicer, to his utter astonishment, was 
led into the presence of Napoleon ! 

For the Germans had not yet the 
faintest idea that the Emperor was in 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



419 



Sedan. Just as Colonel Bronsart was 
starting oflf, General Sheridan, of the 
United States Army, who was attached 
to the royal headquarters, remarked to 
Bismarck that Napoleon himself would 
likely be one of the prizes. 
*'Oh, no," replied the Iron 
Chancellor, "the old fox 
is too cunning to be caught 
in such, a trap ; he has 
doubtless slipped oflf to 
Paris." 

What, tben, was the sur- 
prise of all when Colonel 
Bronsart galloped back to 
the hill-slope of Fresnois 
with the astounding news 
that the Emperor himself 
was in the fortress, and 
would himself at once com- 
municate direct with the 
King ! 

This Colonel Bronsart 
was a man of French ex- 
traction, being descended 
(like so many in Prussia) 
from one of those Hugue- 
not families who had been 
driven into exile by the 
cruel despotism of Louis 
XIV- And now — strange Nemesis of his- 
tory — to the lineal representative of a 
victim of this tyranny was given the 
satisfaction of demanding, on behalf of 
his royal Prussian master, the sword 
of the historical successor in French 
despotism to Louis XIV. 

The effect on the field of battle, as 
the fact of a surrender became obvious 
to the troops, was most extraordinary. 
The opening of one of the gates of 
Sedan to permit the exit of the oflScer 
bearing the flag of truce gave the first 



tion. This gradually gained strength 
until it acquired all the force of actual 
knowledge, and ringing cheers rap 
along the whole German line of battle. 
Shakoes, helmets, bayonets, and sa- 




fmpression of an approaching^ capitula- 



COUNT VON MOIvTKK — COMMANDER OF THB GER- 
MAN ARMY AT SEDAN. 

bres were raised high in the air, an^ 
the vast army swayed to and fro in 
the excitement of an unequalled tri' 
umph. Even the dying shared in the 
general enthusiasm. One huge Prus- 
sian, who had been lying with his hand 
to his side in mortal agony, suddenly 
rose to his feet as he comprehended the 
meaning of the cries, uttered a loud 
" Hurrah ! " waved his hands on high, 
and then, as the blood rushed from his 
wound, fell dead across a Frenchman 

On Bronsart returning to the King 
with his ^lomeutous message, murmur- 



420 



OVERTHROW OF THE FREI^-'^H EMPIRE. 



ed cries of ^^ Der Kaiser ist da!'''' 
(the Kaiser is there) ran through the 
brilliant gathering, and then there was 
a moment of dumbfounded silence. 

"This is, indeed, a great success," 
then said the King to his retinue. 
"And I thank thee" (turning to the 
Crown Prince) "that thou hast helped 
to achieve it." 

A Sealed Letter. 

With that the King gave his hand to 
his son, who kissed it ; then to Moltke, 
who kissed it also. Lastly, he gave his 
hand to the Chancellor, and talked with 
him for some time alone. Presently 
several other horsemen — some escort- 
ing-troopers — were seen ascending the 
hill. The chief of them was General 
Reille, the bearer of Napoleon's flag of 
truce," 

Dismounting about ten paces from 
the King, Reille, who wore no sword 
and carried a cane in his hand, ap- 
proached his Majesty with most humble 
reverence, and presented hiu'. with a 
sealed letter. 

All stepped back from the King, 
who, after saying, " But I demand, as 
the first condition, that the army lay 
down their arms,'' broke the seal and 
read : 

" Monsieur, my Brother, — Not 
having been able to die in the midst of 
my troops, it only remains for me to 
p(ace my sword in the hands of your 
Majesty. I am your Majesty's good bro- 
*her. "Napoleon." 

"Sedan, ist September." 

:Certainly it seemed that the Emperor 
-night have tried very much harder 
'Jian he had done to die in the midst 
of his troops, but his own hear'^ was 
his best judge in this respect 



On reading this imperial letter, the 
King, as well he might, was deeply 
moved. His first impulse, as was his 
pious wont, was to offer thanks to God j 
and then, turning to the silent and 
gazing group behind him, he told theiih 
the contents of the imperial captive*)^ 
letter. 

The Crown Prince with Moltke and 
others talked a little with General Reille, 
whilst the King conferred with his 
Chancellor, who then commissioned 
Count Hartzfeldt to draft an answer to 
the Emperor's missive. 

William to Napoleon. 

In a few minutes it was ready, and 
his majesty wrote it out sitting on a 
rush-bottom chair, while another was 
held up to him by way of desk : 

"Monsieur, my Brother, — Whilst 
regretting the circumstances in which 
we meet, I accept your Majesty's sword, 
and beg you to appoint one of your 
officers, provided with full powers, to 
treat for the capitulation of the army 
which has fought so bravely under your 
command. On my part I have nomi- 
nated General Von Moltke for this pur- 
pose. I am your Majesty's good bro- 
ther, ''William." 
"Before Sedan, ist September, 1870." 

While the King was writing this an- 
swer, Bismarck held a conversation 
with General Reille, who represented 
to the Chancellor that hard conditions 
ought not to be imposed on an army 
which had fought so well. 

"I shrugged my shoulders," said 
Bismarck. 

Reille rejoined that, before accepting 
such conditions, they would blow them- 
selves up sky high with the fortress. 

"Do it, if you like; faites sauter^'* 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



421 



replied Bismarck ; and the King's reply 
was now handed to the envoy of the 
captured Emperor. 

The twilight was beginning to deepen 
when General Reille rode back to 
Sedan, but his way was lighted by the 
• lurid gleam of the conflagrations in and 
, around the fortress which crim- 
soned the evening sky . And swift 
as the upshooting fl.ames of shell- 
struck magazine, flew all around 
the circling German lines the 
great and glorious tidings that the 
Emperor with his army, were 
prisoners of war ! 

In marching and in fighting, 
the troops had performed prodigies 
of exertion and of valor, but their 
fatigues were for the time forgot- 
ten in the fierce intoxication of 
victory ; and when the stars began 
to twinkle overhead, and the hill- 
tops around Sedan to glow with 
flickering watch-fires, up thenarose 
from more than a hundred thou- 
sand grateful German throats, loud 
and clear through the ethereal 
summer night, the deeply pious 
strains of " Now thank we all our 
God ;" and then the curtain of 
darkness fell on one of the most 
tragic and momentous spectacles ever 
witnessed by this age of dramatic change 
and wonders. 

"Before going to sleep," wrote Mr. 
Archibald Forbes — the prince, if not the 
father, of war-correspondents — "I took 
a walk round the half-obliterated ram- 
i)arts which surround the once fortified 
town of Donchery. The scene was very 
fine. The whole horizon was lurid with 
the reflection of fire. All along the val- 
ley of the Meuse, on either side, were 
the bivouacs of the German host. Two 



hundred thousand men lay here around 
their King. On the horizon glowed the 
flames of the burning villages, the 
flicker occasionally reflecting itself on a 
link of the placid Meuse. Over all the 
quiet moon waded through a sky cum- 
bered with wind-clouds. 




MARSHAL BAZAINE — DIVISION COMMANDER OF 
THE FRENCH ARMY, 

" What were the Germans doing on 
this their night of triumph ? Celebrat- 
ing their victory by wassail and riot? 
No. There arose from every camp one 
unanimous chorus of song, but not the 
song of ribaldry. Verily they are a 
great race these Germans — a masterful, 
fighting, praying people ; surely in many 
respects not unlike the men whom 
Cromwell led. The chant that filled the 
night air was Luther's hymn, the glori- 
ous'— 

' Nun danket alle Gott/ 



42^ 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



the ' Old Hundredth ' of Germany. To 
hear this great martial orchestra singing 
this noble hymn under such circum- 
stances was alone worth a journey to 
Sedan, with all its vicissitudes and diffi- 
culties." 

Of the 200,000 men whom the Ger- 
mans had marched up towards Sedan, 
only about 120,000 had taken actual 
part in the battle ; and of these their 
glorious victory had entailed a loss of 
460 officers and 8, 500 men in killed and 
wounded. The French, on the other 
hand, had to lament the terrible loss of 
17,000 killed and wounded, and 24,000 
prisoners taken on the field (including 
3,000 who had fled over into Belgium 
and been disarmed). On the part of the 
Germans, the Bavarians and the men of 
Posen had been the heaviest sufferers. 

Loud Huzzas Greet the King. 

On the night of the battle King Wil- 
liam returned to Vendresse, "being 
greeted," as he himself wrote, "on the 
road by the loud hurrahs of the advanc- 
ing troopS; who were singing the na- 
tional hymn," and extemporizing illu- 
minations in honor of their stupendous 
victory ; while Bismarck, with Moltke, 
Blumenthal, and several other staff- 
officers, remained behind at the village 
of Donchery — a mile or two from Sedan 
— to treat for the capitulation of the 
French army. 

For this purpose an armistice had 
been concluded till four o'clock next 
morning. The chief French negotiators 
were Generals de Wimpffen and Castel- 
nau — the former for the army, the latter 
for the Emperor. 

Both pleaded very hard for a mitiga- 
tion of Moltke' s brief but comprehensive 
condition — unconditional surrender of 



Sedan and all within it. But the Ger 
man strategist was as hard and unbend- 
ing as adamant ; and when De Wimpf- 
fen, with the burning shame of a patriot 
and the grief of a brave soldier convuls- 
ing his heart, talked of resuming the 
conflict rather than submit to such 
humiliating terms, Moltke merely point- 
ed to the 500 guns that were now encir- 
cling Sedan on its ring of heights, and 
at the same time invited Wimpffen to 
send one of his officers to make a tlior- 
ough inspection of the German position 
so as to convince himself of the utter 
hopelessness of renewed resistance. 

Terms are Final. 

The negotiations lasted for several 
hours, and it was past midnight when 
the broken-hearted De Wimpffen and 
his colleagues returned to Sedan, having 
meanwhile achieved no other result than 
the prolongation of the armistice from 
4 to 9 A. M. on the 2nd September, at 
which hour to the minute, said Moltke, 
the fortress would become the target of 
half a thousand guns unless his terms 
were accepted. 

On returning to Sedan about i a. m., 
De Wimpffen at once went to the 
Emperor to make a report on the sad 
state of affairs, and beg his Majesty to 
exert his personal influence to obtain 
more favorable terms for the army. 
For this purpose Napoleon readily un- 
dertook to go to the German headquar- 
ters at 5 A. M. 

Soon after he had driven out of the 
fortress, Wimpffen called a council of 
war, consisting of all the commanding 
generals, and put the question whether 
further resistance was possible. It was 
answered in the despairing negative by 
all the thirty-two generals present, save 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



423 



only two, Pelle and Carre de Bellemare; 
while even these two in the end acqui- 
esced in the absolute necessity of accept- 
ing Moltke's terms on its being shown 
them that another attempt to break 
through the investing lines would only 
lead to useless slaughter. For in the 
course of the night the Germans had 
further tightened their iron grip on the 
fortress, and thickened the girdle of 
their guns. No ; there was clearly 
nothing left for the poor, demoralized 
French but to yield to the inevitable, 
and their only chance lay in the hope 
that the Emperor himself would be able 
to procure some mollification of their 
terrible fate. 

Notable Meeting. 

But the hope proved a vain one. 
Driving forth with several high officers 
from the fortress about 5 a. m., the 
Emperor, who was wearing white kid 
gloves and smoking his everlasting 
cigarette, sent on General Reille to 
Donchery in search of Bismarck ; and 
the latter, "unwashed and unbreak- 
fasted," was soon galloping towards 
Sedan to learn the wishes of his fallen 
Majesty. 

He had not ridden far when he en- 
countered the Emperor, sitting in an 
open carriage, apparently a hired one, 
in which were also three officers of 
high rank, and as many on horseback. 
Bismarck had his revolver in his belt, 
and on the Emperor catching sight of 
this he gave a start ; but the Chancellor, 
saluting and dismounting, approached 
the Emperor with as much courtesy as 
if he had been at the Tuileries, and 
begged to know his Majesty's com- 
mands. 

Napoleon replied that he wanted to 



see the King, but Bismarck explained 
that this was impossible, his Majesty 
being quartered fourteen miles away. 
Had not the King, then, appointed any 
place for him, the Emperor, to go to? 

In a Poor Cottage. 

Bismarck knew not, but meanwhile 
his own quarters were at his Majesty's 
disposal. The Emperor accepted the 
offer, and began to drive slowly towards 
Donchery, but, hesitating on account 
of the possible crowd, stopped at a soli- 
tary cottage, that of a poor weaver, a 
few hundred paces from the Meuse 
bridge, and asked if he could remain 
there. 

"I requested my cousin," said Bis- 
marck, ' ' to inspect the house, and 
he reported that, though free from 
wounded, it was mean and dirty. Fol- 
low, said Napoleon, and with him I 
ascended a rickety, narrow staircase. In 
a small, one-windowed room, with a 
deal table and two rush-bottomed chairs, 
we sat alone for about an hour — a great 
contrast to our last meeting in the Tui- 
leries in 1867," the year of the Paris 
Exhibition. ' ' Our conversation was a 
difficult thing, wanting, as I did, to 
avoid touching on topics which could 
not but painfully affect the man whom 
God's mighty hand had cast down." 

Whenever Napoleon led this conver- 
sation, as he was forever doing, to the 
terribly hard terms of the capitulation, 
Bismarck met him with the assurance 
that this was a purely military question, 
and quite beyond his province. Moltke 
was the man to speak to about sucli 
things. 

In the meantime efforts had been mace 
to find better accommodation for the 
Emperor, and this was at last discovered 



424 



OVERTHROW OF THE) FRENCH EMPIRE. 



in the Chateau Bellevue, a little further 
up the Meuse. Leaving Napoleon in 
the weaver's cottage, Bismarck hurried 
back to his quarters on the market-place 
at Donchery to array himself in his full 
uniform, and then, as he said, "I con- 
ducted his Majesty to Bellevue, with a 
squadron of Cuirassiers as escort." 

King William Absent. 

At the conference which now began, 
the Emperor wished to have the King 
present, from whom he expected soft- 
ness and magnanimity ; but his Majesty 
was told that his wish in this respect 
could not possibly be gratified until 
after the capitulation had been signed. 

Oh ! if he could but see and plead 
with the King — was the anguished 
Emperor's constant thought; but the 
King took very good care, or his coun- 
sellors for him, that he should not ex- 
pose himself to any personal appeal 
for pity until the German army had 
safely garnered a1^ **s splendid harvest 
of victory. 

Meanwhile De Wimpffen had come 
out of Sedan with the despairing de- 
cision of the council of war, and the 
determination to accept Moltke's inex- 
orable terms. But even Moltke, the 
least sentrmental and emotional of men 
could not help feeling a genuine throb 
of pity for the very hard fate of De 
Wimpffen — a man of German origin, 
as his name implied — on whom it thus 
fell to sign away the existence of an 
army, of which he had not been four- 
and-twenty hours in supreme command. 

After his interview with Napoleon, 
Bismarck rode to Chehery (on the road 
to Vendresse), in the hope of meeting 
the King and informing him how 
things stood. On the way he was met 



by Moltke, who had the text of the ca- 
pitulation as approved by his Majesty ; 
and on their return to Bellevue it was 
signed without opposition. 

By this unparalleled capitulation 83,- 
000 men were surrendered as prisoners 
of war in addition to the fortress of 
Sedan with its 138 pieces of artillery, 
420 field-guns, including 70 mitrail-. 
lenses, 6,000 horses fit for service, 66,- 
000 stand of arms, 1,000 baggage and 
other wagons, an enormous quantity of 
military stores, and three standards. 
Among the prisoners yieldedup were the 
Emperor and one of his field marshals 
(MacMahon), 40 generals, and 2,825 
various other officers, all of whom, by 
the special mercy of King William, 
were offered release on parole, though 
only 500 of them took advantage of 
this condition, the others being sent to 
Germany. By the catastrophe of Sedan 
the French had lost — in killed, wounded 
and prisoners — no fewer than 124,000 
men at one fell swoop ! 

Full Surrender. 

With the capitulation , sealed and 
signed, Bismarck and Moltke now hast- 
ened back to the King, whom they 
found on the heights above Donchery 
about noon. His Majesty ordered the 
important document to be read aloud 
to his numerous and brilliant suite, 
which included several German princes. 

Now that an appeal had been taken 
out of the Emperor's power, the King, 
accompanied by the Crown Prince, rode 
down to the chateau of Bellevue to 
meet the fallen monarch. "At one 
o'clock," wrote his Majesty to Queen 
Augusta, ' ' I and Fritz set out, accom- 
panied by an escort of cavalry belong- 
ing to the staff. I dismounted at the 



OVERTHROW OF THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 



425 



chateau, and the Emperor came out to 
meet me. The visit lasted for a quarter 
of an hour. We were both deeply- 
moved. I cannot describe what I felt 
at the interview, having seen Napoleon 
only three years ago at the height of 
bis power." 

And now, while the crushed and 
broken-hearted Emperor was left to 
spend his last day on the soil of France 
prior to his departure "or the place of his 
detention at Wil lelmshohe, near Cassel 
(once, strange to say, the residence of 
his uncle, King Jerome of Westpha" a), 
King William, accompanied by Moltke, 
Roon, Bismarck, and the rest of his 
paladins, started on a ride through all 
the positions occupied by the German 
armies round Sedan. For five long 
tours, over hill and dale, from battery 



to battalion, and from corps to corps, 
through all the various tribes of the 
Fatherland in arms, rode the brilliant 
cavalcade, greeted with triumphant 
music and frantic cheering wherever it 
went. " I cannot describe," wrote the 
King, " the reception given me by the 
troops, nor my meeting with the 
Guards, who have been decimated. I 
was deeply affected by so many proofs 
of love and devotion." 

No wonder the Germans very nearly 
went mad with joy . For no victory had 
ever been like this crowning master- 
piece of Moltke' s genius — so colossal, 
so complete, so momentous in its polit- 
ical results, which converted the French 
Empire into a Republic and the 
Germanic Confederation into an Em- 
pire. 



CHAPTER XXVII. 



American Victories in the War with Spain. 



(»)c,TPON the outbreak of the war 
A^ J between the United States and 
^J>|^— i^ Spain in 1898, Admiral 
Dewey was in command of 
our Asiatic squadron, which at this 
time was lying in the harbor of Hong 
Kong. Colonel Roosevelt, of Rough 
Rider fame, being then Assistant Secre- 
tary of the Navy, gave orders from 
Washington to Admiral Dewey to pro- 
ceed to Manila and capture or destroy 
the Spanish fleet which was known 
to be in those waters. 

The sailing of the American fleet 
from Hong Kong on April 27 was 
promptly cabled to Manila. Many of 
the better class of residents at once 
hurried aboard merchant vessels with 
their valuables and fled. Those left 
behind took no courage from the con- 
fident boastings of the Spanish army 
and naval officers, but gave way to 
panic from fear of what would happen 
when the native insurgents made an 
attack on the town. It was known to 
the Spanish authorities that the Ame- 
rican fleet would be almost certain to 
arrive on the evening of Saturday, 
April 30th. 

The Spanish fleet, which at first put 
to sea to meet and destroy the " cow- 
ardly Yankees," was recalled Saturday 
afternoon and lined up at Cavite, where 
the arsenals, dry-docks and naval war- 
ships were defended by a long line of 
earthworks. These works had been 
greatly strengthened, notably by the 
addition of several big modern guns. 
426 



They were regarded as very formidable 
by old-fashioned Spanish military en- 
gineers, as were also the fort on Corre- 
gidor Island, the battery on Cabilla Is- 
land, and the works on the mainland 
points to the north and the south. 
These islands were all in readiness, 
and a chain of mines which guarde(J 
both channels was prepared to blow up 
each American ship as it passed. 

Saturday night fell with the Span- 
iards on land and water quite cheerful 
over the coming engagement. A short 
time after midnight, the darkness being 
intense, one of the guns in Corregidor 
suddenly boomed out, and all the othei 
guns about the entrance to the bay 
took up the cry, and the anxious people 
in Manila poured into the streets. 
They thought the battle had begun. 
In reality the American fleet was al- 
ready past the entrance and was on its 
way up the opposite side of the bay. 

It was a night of terror in Manila. 
The women and children fled to the 
churches, and men rushed to and fro 
in the streets. Dismay seized upon 
the Spanish soldiers. They had not 
believed that the Americans could ever 
get past the entrance to the batteries 
and past the mines. lyong before dawn 
the panic became a frenzy because of 
reports that came from the interior of 
the island that the natives were mass- 
ing for a descent upon the city to pill- 
age and massacre. When day broke 
the tens of thousands watching on ail 
sides of the vast and beautiful harboi 



AMERICAN VICTORIES IN THE WAR WITH SPAIN. 



427 



saw the enemy in line of battle about 
ten miles out, directly in front of Ma- 
nila. There were nine vessels in all. 

The Olympia, 5800 tons, a swift com- 
merce destroyer, carrying four terrible 
8-inch guns and ten deadly 5-inch quick- 
firers. This was Dewey's flagship. 

The Baltimore, scarcely 
less formidable than the 
Olympia, with four eight- 
inch guns and six six-inch 
rapid-firers. 

The Boston, smaller than 
the Olympia and Balti- 
more, but still a real and ^^' 
powerful floating fort, with 
her two eight-inch guns 
and her six six-inch rapid- 
firers. 

The Raleigh, similar to 
the Boston, with one six- 
inch and ten five-inch 
guns. 

The Concord, with six 
six-inch guns. 

The gunboat Petrel, with 
five six-inch guns. 

To the rear of these the 
transport ships, with coal, 
ammunition and accom- 
modations for wounded. 

With a bright American flag floating 
gayly over each ship, the decks and all 
visible appointments neat and trim, 
the fleet seemed to be out for a holiday 
rather than awaiting an opening for 
the only real demonstration of an iron- 
clad fleet in action that the world has 
had. The Spaniards could hardly be- 
lieve their own eyes. That this formid- 
able apparition 'was in the very centre 
of their harbor, almost within firing 
distance of the capital city of their last 
Eastern possessions seemed impossible. 



They had not long to watch and 
speculate. The sun was hardly clear ot 
the horizon before the American fleet 
began to steam in slow and stately 
fashion straight toward the city, near 
which were anchored three men-of-war 
from three different nations, French, 




ADMIRAL George; dewuy — hero of manila. 

German and English. The decks and 
rigging of each of these ships were 
thronged with eager officers and sailors, 
discipline seeming to have been forgot- 
ten in an intense desire to see what the 
Yankees would do — these Yankees who 
in three quarters of a century have 
never sent a hostile fleet into any port 
of a European Power. 

On came the American fleet until it 
was within about three miles of Manila, 
and then a Spanish gun on the battery 
at the end of the Mole spoke ; but the 



4^8 



AMERICAN VICTORIES IN THE WAR WITH SPAIN. 



shot fell short. Then from the Span- 
ish fleet, steaming slowly up from Ca- 
vite, came several shots at the Ameri- 
can fleet. The two duelists were now 
face to face. 



The smaller cruisers Velasco, Don 
Juan de Austria, and Don Antonio de 
Ulloa, besides ten gunboats. 

Then there were the batteries on 
shore all along the low peninsula. 




MANILA HARBOR — SCENE) 

To expert eyes the Spanish fleet 
seemed far inferior, yet to the people 
watching, and, apparently, to the Span- 
ish ofiicers and sailors, the difference 
did not seem great. The Spanish ships 
were of older patterns, rather than 
smaller, and were far more numerous. 
There were : 

The Reina Cristina, of 3090 tons, 
with six six-inch and two three-inch 
guns. 

The Castilla, with four six-inch guns. 



OF THE GRUDAT BATTLE. 

To get the full effect of all of these* 
g'lns the Spaniards formed so that the 
Americans would have to face not only 
all the guns atloat, but also all the guns: 
on shore at Cavite, while from the reat 
the strong batteries of Manila could, 
perhaps, send aiding shots. When the 
American manoeuverings brought their 
ships within range, at about 6.45, the 
real duel began. The Spanish fleet 
stood ready, flanked by the Cavite bat- 
teries on the south. 



AMERICAN VICTORIES IN THE WAR WITH SPAIN. 



429 



Tlie American fleet began to steam 
languidly to and fro. Suddenly there 
were one or two sharp cracks, and then 
a succession of deafening roars, and 
then one long, reverberating roar, that 
boomed and bellowed from shore to 
shore. A huge cloud of 
smoke lay close upon the 
waters, and around it was a 
penumbra of thick haze. 

Through this the Ameri- 
can ships could be seen mov- 
ing, now slowly, now more 
rapidly, flames shooting from 
their sides, and answering 
flames leaping from the Span- 
ish ships and land batter- 
ies, while now and then 
from the direction of Manila 
came hollow rumbles as the 
big guns there were dis- 
charged, more from eager- 
ness to take part than from 
the hope of lending eflfcc- 
tive aid. 

It was impossible to see 
from shore the effect of many 
of the shots, but from the fact 
that the American ships were 
alternately advancing and re- 
treating in the course of their 
manoeu verings the Spaniards 
on shore got the impression 
that the Yankees were being beaten. 
When the ships were again seen, the 
Reina Cristina was wrapped in flames. 
On her decks sailors, Spaniards and 
natives, were rushing frantically about. 
The Isle De Cuba came near, and part 
of the Reina Cristina's crew— perhaps 
all that were still alive — and the Span- 
ish Admiral went aboard her, but hardly 
were they aboard when she, too, burst 
into flames. 



Confusion now reigned throughout 
the Spanish fleet. On every vessel the 
decks were slippery with blood and the 
air filled with the shrieks and groans of 
the Spaniards. The native sailors rushed 
about in a frenzy of rage rather thaa 




ADMIRAL MONTOJO, 
COMMANDER OP SPANISH FI^EET AT MANII.A. 

terror. The Americans were seemingly 
calm and cool, and still in good order 
they pressed their advantage. In fact, 
they pushed on too closely, for now the 
fire from the Cavite batteries became 
effective. 

At this juncture the Don Juan de 
Austria became a centre of interest. 
She had been in the very front of battle 
and received, perhaps, more of the 
American shots than any other ship. 



430 



AMERICAN VICTORIES IN THE WAR WITH SPAIN. 



Admiral Montojo, on the burning Isla 
de Cuba, threw up his arms with a ges- 
ture of despair as a heavy roar came 
from the Don Juan de Austria and part 
of her deck flew up in the air, taking 
with it scores of dead, dying and man- 
gled. A shot had penetrated one of her 
magazines. She was ruined and sink- 
ing, but her crew refused to leave her. 
Weeping, cursing, praying and firing 
madly and blindly they went down with 
her, and as the Don Juan de Austria 
went down the Castilla burst into 
flames. 

Great American Victory, 
The remainder of the Spanish fleet 
now turned and fled down the long, 
narrow inlet behind Cavite. Several 
of the gun- brats were run ashore, others 
fled up a v<=irjall creek and were grounded 
there. The guns of Cavite kept on 
thundering, and the Americans, pressing 
their advantage no further, drew off. 
As they steamed away toward their 
waiting transports the Spaniards went 
wild with joy. 

They thought that in spite of outward 
appearances the American fleet was 
crippled, and that as it would be unable 
to escape from the harbor it would fall 
into their hands. This was telegraphed 
up to Manila, and soon to Madrid, 
where it filled the Ministry with mo- 
mentary delight ; but before the Minis- 
ters at Madrid had read the false news, 
the American fleet, with decks again 
cleared, and with fresh supplies of 
ammunition, was steaming back toward 
Cavite. 

This second engagement was short. 
The last Spanish ship was soon ground- 
ed or sunk. The American guns were 
now trained on Cavite, and one ship 



after another steamed along pouring in 
a deadly fire. At 1 1. 30 the batteries at 
Cavite ceased to answer, and the Amer- 
ican fleet with ringing cheers from its ex- 
hausted, but triumphant crews steamed 
jubilantly back to the transport ships. 
And to the long list of splendid naval 
victories beginning with the Revolution 
was added the glorious victory of Ma- 
nila. 

In honor of his distinguished services 
Commodore Dewey was raised to the 
rank of Admiral, and Congress passed a 
series of resolutions thfl.nking him and 
his men for services rendered their 
country. 

In the following August the city of 
Manila was captured by our troops 
under command of General Merritt, 
aided by Dewey's fleet. 

War in Cuba. 

During the early part of July such 
complete victories were gained by the 
American land and naval forces in Cuba 
as to end the war with Spain. Our 
Government at Washington despatched 
the North Atlantic Squadron under 
command of Admiral Sampson, and the 
squadron under command of Admiral 
Schley, to Santiago on the southern 
coast of Cuba. Troops to the number 
of 16,000 were also ordered to Santiago 
under command of General Shafter. 

The American officers showed the 
utmost energy in preparing for the at- 
tack on Santiago; by July 1st every- 
thing was in readiness, and General 
Shafter ordered a forward movement 
with a view of investing and capturing 
the town. The advance was made in 
two divisions, the left storming the 
works at San Juan. Our forces in this 
assault were composed of the Rotigh 



AMERICAN VICTORIES IN THE WAR WITH SPAIN. 



431 



Riders, commanded by Colonel Wood, 
subsequently by Lieutenant-Colonel 
Roosevelt, and the First, Third, Sixth, 
Ninth and Tenth dismounted cavalry. 
Catching the enthusiasm and boldness 
of the Rough Riders, these men rushed 
against the San Juan defences with a 
fury that was irresistible. 

Their fierce assault was met 
by the Spaniards with a stub- 
bornness born of desperation. 
Hour after hour the troops on 
both sides fought fiercely. In 
the early morning the Rough 
Riders met with a similar, 
though less costly experience 
to the one they had at La 
Quasina just a week before, 
where in a hot skirmish they 
lost a number of men. They ' 
found themselves a target for a 
terrific Spanish fire, to resist 
which for a time was the work 
of madmen. But the Rough 
Riders did not flinch. Fight- 
ing like demons, they held their 
ground tenacious]\, now press- 
ing forward a ^ r feet, then 
falling back, uuGv <fhe enemy's 
fire, to the position they held 
a few moments before. 

The Spaniards were no maicn for the 
Roosevelt fighters, however, and as 
had been the case at La Quasina, the 
Western cowboys and Eastern " dan- 
dies " hammered the enemy from their 
path. Straight ahead they advanced, 
until by noon they were well along to- 
ward San Juan, the capture of which 
was their immediate object. 

There was terrible fighting about the 
heights during the next two hours. 
While the Rough Riders were playing 
such havoc in the enemy's lines, the 



First, Third, Sixth, Ninth and Tenth 
cavalry gallantry pressed forward to 
right and left. 

Before the afternoon was far gone 
these organizations made one grand 
rush all along the line, carrying the 
Spaniards off their feet, capturing tht 
San Juan fortifications, and sending 




GKNKRAI. WE;SI.E;y MEJRRITT, 
COMMANDER OF AMERICAN ARMY AT MANILA. 

the enemy in mad haste off toward 
Santiago. It was but three o'clock 
when these troops were able to send 
word to General Shafter that they had 
taken possession of the position he had 
given them a day to capture. 

In this attack the cavalrymen were 
supported by the Sixth and Sixteenth 
infantry, who made a brilliant charge 
at the crucial moment. The advance 
was up a long steep slope, through a 
heavy underbrush. Our men were 
subjected to a terrific fire from the ene- 



432 



AMERICAN VICTORIES IN THE WAR WITH SPAIN. 



my's trenches, and the Rough Riders 
and the Sixth cavahy suffered severely. 
On the right, General Lawton's divi- 
sion, supported by Van Home's bri- 
gade, under command temporarily of 
Colonel lyudlow, of the Engineers, drove 
the enemy from in front of Caney, forc- 
ing them back into the village. There 




, ■'*■»' 




GENKRAL WIIvIvIAM R. SHAFTER, 
COMMANDER OF AMERICAN ARMY AT SANTIAGO 

the Spaniards for a time were able to 
hold their own, but early in the after- 
noon the American troops stormed the 
village defences, driving the enemy out 
and taking possession of the place. 
Gaining the direct road into Santiago, 
they established their lines within three- 
quarters of a mile of the city at sunset. 
General Shafter's advance against the 
city of Santiago was resumed soon after 
daybreak on the morning of July 2d. 
The American troops renewed the at- 
tack on the Spanish defences with 



impetuous enthusiasm. They were not 
daunted by the heavy losses sustained 
in the first day's fighting. Inspired by 
the great advantages they had gained 
on the preceding day, the American 
troops were eager to make the final 
assault on the city itself Their ad- 
vance had been an uninterrupted series 
of successes, they having forced 
the Spaniards to retreat from 
each new position as fast as it 
jad been taken. Admiral Samp- 
son, with his entire fleet, joined 
in the attack. 

The battles before the intrench- 
ments around Santiago resulted 
in advantage to General Shaf- 
'_ ter's army. Gradually he ap- 
proached the city, holding every 
foot of ground gained. In the 
fighting of July 2d, the Spanish 
were forced back into the town, 
their commanding general was 
wounded, and the day closed 
with the certainty that soon our 
flag would float over Santiago. 

The fleet of Admiral Cervera 
had long been shut up in the 
harbor, and during the two 
days' fighting gave effective aid 
to the Spanish infantry by throw" 
ing shells into the ranks of the Ameri- 
cans. On the morning of July 3d, an- 
other great naval victory was added to 
the successes of the American arms, a 
victory no less complete and memorabl j 
than that achieved by Dewey at Ma- 
nila. 

Admiral Cervera' s fleet, consisting of 
the armored cruisers Cristobal Colon, 
Almirante Oquendo, Infanta Maria Te- 
resa, and Vizcaya, and two torpedo-boat 
destioycrs, the Furor and the Pluton, 
which had been held in the harbor of 



AMERICAN VICTORIES IN THE WAR WITH SPAlJN. 



43a 



Santiago de Cuba for six weeks by the 
combined squadrons of Rear-Admiral 
Sampson and Commodore Schley, was 
sent to the bottom of the Caribbean Sea 
off the southern coast of Cuba. 

The Spanish admiral was made a 
prisoner of war on the auxiliary gun- 
boat Gloucester, and i,ooo to i,SOO 
other Spanish ofScers and sailors, 
all who escaped the frightful car- 
nage caused by the shells from the 
American warships, were also made 
prisoners of war by the United 
States navy. 

The American victory was com- 
plete, and the American vessels / 
were practically untouched, and 
only one man was killed, though 
the ships were subjected to the 
heavy fire of the Spaniards all the 
time the battle lasted. 

Admiral Cervera made as gal- 
lant a dash for liberty and for the 
preservation of the ships as has 
ever occurred in the history of 
naval warfare. In the face of 
overwhelming odds, with nothing 
before him but inevitable destruc- 
tion or surrender if he remained 
nny longer in the trap in which 
Mie American fleet held him, 
lie made a bold dash from the harbor 
at the time the Americans least ex- 
pected him to do so, and, fighting 
every inch of his way, even when his 
ship was ablaze and sinking, he tried to 
escape the doom which was written on 
the muzzle of every American gun 
trained upon his vessels 

The Americans saw him the moment 
he left the harbor and commenced their 
work of destruction immediately. For 
an hour or two they followed the flying 
Spaniards to the westward alone the 
28 Y. p. H. w. 



shore line, sending shot after shot into 
their blazing hulls, tearing great holes 
in their steel sides and covering their 
decks with the blood of the killed and 
wounded. 

At no time did the Spaniards show 
any indication that they intended to do 
otherwise than fight to the last They 




\DMIRAL CERVERA — COMMANDER OF THB 
SPANISH FIvEET AT SANTIAGO. 

displayed no signals to surrender even 
when their ships commenced to sink 
and the great clouds of smoke pouring 
from their sides showed they were on 
fire. But they turned their heads toward 
tlie shore, less than a mile away, and 
ran them on the beach and rocks, where 
their destruction was soon completed. 

The ofiicers and men on board then 
escaped to the shore as well as they 
could with the assistance of boats sent 
from the American men-of-war, and 
then threw themselves upon the mercy 



43-2 



AMERICAN VICTORIES IN THE WAR WITH SPAIN. 



of their captors, who not only extended 
to them the gracious hand of American 
chivalry, but sent them a guard to pro- 
tect them from the murderous bands of 
Cuban soldiers hiding in the bushes on 
the hillside, eager to rush down and 
attack the unarmed, defeated, but val- 
orous foe. 

One after another the Spanish ships 
became the victims of the awful 
rain of shells which the American bat- 
tleships, cruisers and gun-boats poured 
upon them, and two hours after the first 
of the fleet had started out of Santiago 
harbor three cruisers and two torpedo- 
boat destroyers were lying on the shore 
ten to fifteen m.iles west of Morro Cas- 
tle, pounding to pieces, smoke and 
flame pouring from every part of them 
and covering the entire coast line 
with a mist which could be seen for 
miles. 

Heavy explosions of ammunition oc- 
curred every few minutes, sending curls 
of dense white smoke a hundred feet 
in the air and causing a shower of bro- 
ken iron and steel to fall in the water on 
every side. The bluffs on the coast 
line echoed' with the roar of every ex- 
plosion, and the Spanish vessels sank 
deeper and deeper into the sand or 
<»lse the rocks ground their hulls to 



pieces as they rolled or pitched forward. 
or sideways with every wave that washed 
upon them from the open sea. 

Admiral Cervera escaped to the shore 
in a boat sent by the Gloucester to the 
assistance of the Infanta Maria Teresa, 
and as soon as he touched the beach he 
surrendered himself and his command 
to Lieutenant Morton and asked to be 
taken on board the Gloucester, which 
was the only American vessel near him 
at the time, with several of his officers, 
including the captain of the flagship. 
The Spanish admiral, who was wounded 
in the arm, was taken to the Gloucester, 
and was received at her gangway by 
her commander. Lieutenant Richard 
Wainwright, who grasped the hand of 
the gray-bearded admiral and said to 
him: 

' ' I congratulate you, sir, upon having 
made as gallant a fight as was ever wit- 
nessed on the sea. " 

The only casualties in the American 
fleet were one man killed and two 
wounded on the Brooklyn. A large 
number of the Spanish wounded were 
removed to the American ships. 

Soon afterward the Spanish army in 
the Province of Santiago surrendered 
to General Shafter and our war with 
Spain was ended. 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 



War Between the British and the Boers. 




YJ)^j'OSTILITIES between Great 
Britain and the Transvaal, or 
South African Republic, 
which had been impending 
for several years broke out in October, 
1899. On the 9tli of this month the 
British Government received the Boer 
ultimatum, demanding that points in 
dispute be referred to arbitration ; that 
all British troops on the border of the 
Transvaal be instantly withdrawn ; that 
reinforcements sent to South Africa 
since June ist be removed ; that no 
more troops be landed in South Africa, 
and that Great Britain answer before 
5 o'clock p. M., October nth. On the 
same date the Gordon Highlanders and 
troops from India were ordered to Lady- 
smith, a town in Natal. 

Great Britain on the loth, replied 
that conditions demanded by the Trans- 
vaal were such as could not be dis- 
cussed. The British agent was in- 
structed to apply for his passport, 
which meant that war was an assured 
fact, and that communication between 
the two governments was now at an 
end. 

The time for acceptance of the ulti- 
matum expired at 5 o'clock p. m., Oc- 
tober iith. Conyngham Greene, the 
British agent at Pretoria, paid his fare- 
well visits to President Kruger and the 
Boer officials. General Prinsloo was 
appointed Commander-in-Chief of the 
Orange Free State forces ; headquarters 
at Albertina. The Boers occupied 
lyaing's Nek and the British hurried 
troops to the western border. 

The Orange Free State joined the 



Transvaal in war against Great Britain, 
and hurried troops forward to co-operate 
with the Boer army under command of 
General Joubert. General Cronje com- 
manded the Boer forces on the western 
border, and laid siege to Kimberley, 
the "Diamond City," and also to Mafe- 
king, another important town lying 
north of Kimberley. It will suffice for 
our present purpose to furnish here a 
chronicle of the important events of the 
struggle, which was desperate and 
bloody, both sides exhibiting the most 
consummate strategy and the greatest 
heroism. 

At Nicholson's Nek about 800 Brit- 
ish officers and men and two-thirds of a 
mountain battery were captured, and 
about 650 prisoners and two guns fell 
into the hands of the Boers at Storm- 
berg. Eleven guns were also taken by 
the Boers at Colenso. 

General Buller suffered a severe re- 
pulse at Colenso on December 15th, but 
his campaign met with its greatest dis- 
aster late in January. A flanking move- 
ment, under the immediate command 
of General Warren, failed signally, and 
a general withdrawal of the British 
forces to the south side of the Tugela 
River was the immediate result. 

Mafeking was invested on October 
14th, and after that date Colonel Baden- 
Powell, with 1,600 irregulars, kept at 
bay a Boer force with a varying strength 
of from 2,000 to 5,000 men. 

Ivord Methuen, commanding the 
British forces on the western border, 
fought four battles and advanced to 
within twenty-five miles of beleaguered 

435 



436 



WAR BETWEEN THE BRITISH AND THE BOERS. 



Kimberley. Belmont, Gras Pan and 
Modder River cost 1,167 lives, and at 
Magersfontein, where his progress was 
stopped, he lost 967 more ment He then 
remained at a standstill nntil General 
Roberts arrived with reinforcements, 
drove the Boers back, finally captured 
General Cronje and some 4,000 of his 
troops, and raised the seige of Kimber- 
ley. This occurred on February 27th. 
Lord Roberts reached Modder River 
February 9th, where a force of British 
troops had been concentrated. On 
February nth British cavalry and 
mounted infantry began the movement 
on the Boer's left flank which resulted 
General Cronje's flight toward 



m 



Bloemfontein, capital of Orange Free 
State, his being surrounded at Paarde- 
burg on February 19th, after a series of 
rear-guard engagements and his surren 
der on February 27th, as already stated. 
Meanwhile Kimberley was incidentally 
relieved on February 15th, after a siege 
of 123 days. 

In the latter part of October, soon 
after the war began, battles were fought 
in the northern part of Natal, yet were 
not decisive. The British troops en- 
countered a strong force of Boers at 
Dundee, and also at Elandslaagte. On 
October 20th the Boer General Inkas 
Meyer's column attacked the British 
forces under General Symons. The 
British troops suffered severely, and 
General Symons was mortally wounded. 
At Elandslaagte, October 21st, a British 
column under General French, com- 
mander of cavalry, routed the Boers. 
General Yule withdrew the British 
forces to Ladysmith, and this town was 
besieged. 

The disasters that overtook the Boers 
on the western border compelled them 



to abandon the siege at Ladysmith 
and on February 28th General Dun- 
donald with the Natal Carbineers and a 
composite regiment entered Ladysmith. 
The garrison was on a half pound of 
meal daily per man and were supple- 
menting the meat ration with horses 
and mules. It was learned that General 
White had withstood a heavy bombard- 
ment, repelled two hard pressed attacks 
and made two successful sorties. 

Peace proposals having been made 
by the Boer government, unconditional 
surrender on the part of the Transvaal 
and Orange Free State, and an absolute 
declination to consider any proffer of 
good offices or intervention on the part 
of any foreign Power, was the policy 
decided upon by the British Govern- 
ment. 

After the Boers were driven from 
Bloemfontein they concentrated at Wep- 
ener, a short distance to the south-east. 
This place was held by the British, who 
successfully resisted several sharp at- 
tacks. This was the beginning of the 
end, and the Boers gave up a hopeless 
struggle. Lord Roberts was the most 
prominent leader of the British forces. 

The success of the British arms in 
the South African war placed a large 
area of territory in the southern part of 
the continent of Africa under control 
of Great Britain. Gold and diamond 
mines of immense value are located in 
this part of Africa. 

The whole continent is in the pro- 
cesss of rapid development. Civiliza- 
tion is extending over that part of the 
country formerly occupied by wild 
animals and savages. A railway the 
whole length of Africa, and already 
partially constructed, is one of the great 
projects soon to be realized. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 



"War Between Russia and Japan. 



IN FEBRUARY, 1904, war broke 
out between Russia and Japan. 
The essence of Japan's demands 
translated from diplomatic lan- 
guage, was the absolute territorial in- 
tegrity of Korea and China, the latter 
referring especially to Manchuria. 
Russia on January 6th returned an an- 
swer to Japan's note of December 22d, 
in which the latter had refused Russia's 
proposal that all Korea north of the 
thirty-ninth degree of latitude (about 
one-third of the country) should be 
neutral'. 

Japan in this had also stipulated that 
the special concessions of either nation 
in Korea or China should be recognized, 
provided that the "open door" policy 
be observed. In Russia's answer she 
again insisted upon the neutral zone 
and vaguely hinted her intentions to 
respect Japan's right in Manchuria. On 
January 1 3th Japan replied reaffirming 
her demands, and apparently closing 
the door to any further quibbling. Japan 
stood firm on this proposition. Those 
who thought it impossible for so power- 
ful a nation as Russia to recede from its 
position at the behest of a much smaller 
power could see only war. as a result. 

In the meantime Japan continued all 
her preparations as though she actually 
expected war. A prominent Tokio 
paper in a warlike editorial declared 
that every hope of securing the legiti- 
mate demands of Japan diplomatically 
had been abandoned and the govern- 
ment, therefore, was compelled to take 
such steps and to reserve to itself such 
freedom of action as would insure per- 



petual peace in the Far East. Japan 
prepared her finances for an unlimited 
war expenditure, she continued the pur- 
chase and manufacture of ammunition 
and supplies, she impressed a score of 
ocean passenger steamers as provided 
in their charters, published an imperial 
ordinance approving the various coast 
defense regulations and forbidding, 
under stated penalties, the navigating 
of private vessels fishing within specific 
areas, or the carrying out of marine 
work which might be inimical to Jap-, 
anese naval interests, purchased ad- 
ditional naval vessels, took possession 
of railways for transportation purposes, 
and took many other steps preparatory 
for war. 

On the midnight of February 8th, 
Japan struck the great Russian power 
a blow full in the face, and the long- 
impending struggle began. It has been 
frequently said i-hat the way to prevent 
war is to be prepared for it. Japan was 
prepared for it and precipitated it. 
Russia was only partly prepared for it, 
but had she been fully prepared, it 
could not have been prevented. This 
war became inevitable when Russia, 
backed by France and Germany, 
wrenched from Japan the chief fruits of 
the latter's victory over China in 1895. 
Indeed, it seems to have become inevit- 
able long before that. Russia's gradual 
expansion eastward through Asia, ren- 
dering ultimately necessary to her the ' 
control of important points on the Pa- 
cific coast opposite Japan, and Japan's 
very natural ambition to gain holdings 
and commercial advantages on the con- 

437 



438 



WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND JAPAN. 



tinent, were long ago ominous of 
"war's dreaded alarms." 

The naval attacks on the Russian 
fleet were successful, and a number of 
ships were captured and the Japanese 
took possession of several important 
ports. 

The Japanese fleet continued to infest 
Port Arthur, and every day some sort of 
attack on it or its protecting fleet was 
made. The Japanese naval tactics were 
evidently to avoid a close range fight in 
which some of her vessels might pos- 
sibly be injured, but to bombard at safe 
range, which would be disturbing and 
effective, until such time as aland force 
could co-operate in the capture of this 
stronghold. The Russian fleet was too 
weak to do more than act on the de- 
fensive, under protection of the guns of 
the forts. The reduction and capture 
of Port Arthur seems to have been the 
first objective of the Japanese. 

Greatest Disaster. 

The comparative calm which had 
hovered over the Yellow Sea was 
broken on the 13th of April by the 
greatest disaster of the war, and again 
it was the Russians who were the suf- 
ferers. On that morning the Petropav- 
lovsk, one of the huge battleships of 
the Russian navy, was destroyed by the 
explosion of a mine under her keel 
and sunk, together with nearly six 
hundred of her crew. But even this 
did not measure the extent of the disas- 
ter. Admiral Makarofif, the idol of the 
Russian navy and the commander of 
the Port Arthur fleet, was lost with all 
of his staff". It was the merest chance 
that the royal family was not thrown 
into mourning for one of its own mem- 
bers. Tlie Grand Duke Cyril, a cousin 



of the Czar, who was on the ship, was 
injured by the explosion and thrown 
into the water, but he is of powerful 
build and an athlete, and kept himself 
afloat until rescued by one of the 
smaller craft. 

Important events occurred on the war 
stage during the month. The Japanese 
army kept in the background while the 
navy was scoring its successes, came to 
the front as a vigorous offensive force. 
The islands in the estuary of the river 
were occupied by both armies. The 
Japanese forces comprised what is desig- 
nated in the dispatches as the "first 
army," and was under command of 
General Kuroki. 

Japanese Operations. 

From the 24th to the 30th of April 
the Japanese were engaged in various 
operations aiming at the crossing of the 
river. These extended as far as seventy- 
five miles up the stream. The 28th, 
29th and 30th witnessed considerable 
serious fighting, and by the night of the 
latter date, the Japanese had succeeded 
in putting their force upon the north 
bank of the river. The main crossing 
was on a pontoon bridge near Wi-ju. 

The climax came on May ist, when 
the Japanese made a direct attack upon 
the Russian lines at Kin-lin-chang. 
The Russians had the advantage ot 
position, but the Japanese were largely 
superior in numbers. The fighting was 
desperate and at close range upon both 
sides, but the Russians were defeated. 
An-tung was abandoned by them and 
occupied by the victorious Japanese. 
Twenty eight Russian guns were cap- 
tured and a large quantity of arms and 
ammunition. 

The Russians fell back to Feng- 



WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND JAPAN. 



439 



Wang-Cheng, the "gate of Korea," and 
about forty miles from the Yalu, where 
it was announced an unusual strong- 
position was occupied and would be de- 
fended. Strong reinforcements were 
also reported on their way from Liao- 
Yang on the line of the railroad, which 
added to the natural defenses of the 
position would render an attack by the 
Japanese almost hopeless. The Japan- 
ese, however pressed forward, and Feng- 
Wang-Cheng was occupied by them on 
the 6th of May, the Russians retiring 
in the direction of Liao-Yang. 

Blew up Magazine. 

Before leaving they exploded the 
magazine, but left large quantities of 
hospital stores and equipment. It was 
at first reported that the Russians had 
evacuated without special pressure, but 
it transpired that several sharp engage- 
ments in that vicinity had occurred. 
Large numbers of prisoners from Gen- 
eral Zasselitch's army were captured 
here, being unable to join the main 
retreating force. To have crossed the 
Yalu, and advanced as far as Feng- 
Wang-Cheng was a great week's work, 
and the work of General Kuroki was 
accounted a great success. 

Another great movement in the Jap- 
anese campaign, which was timed to 
follow Kuroki's success and the further 
bottling up of Port Arthur's harbor, 
was the landing of the "second army '' 
under General Oku on the Liao-Tung 
peninsula. This occurred on the 5 th 
and 6th. 

On May 12th Viceroy AlexeiefF re- 
ported to the Czar that the Russians 
had blown up the docks and piers at 
Dalny. This was done to render more 
difficult a Japanese landing at that 



point. The destruction of this valuable 
property showed the desperate condition 
which Russia considered herself in at 
that point. 

Dalny, with Port Arthur, was leased 
by the Chinese Government to Russia 
in 1898, and before the end of four 
years the latter country had expended 
over $6,000,000 on the harbor system. 
Five large piers had been constructed, 
each being supplied with numerous 
railroad tracks and immense warehouses 
and elevators, gas, electric lights, and 
water, and a large breakwater were 
being constructed. It was estimated 
that the cost of completing the works 
would be nearly $20,000,000. Russia 
intended the city to be the chief com- 
mercial emporium of her Eastern 
dominions. Talienwan Bay, on which 
the city is located, is one of the finest 
deep water harbors on the Pacific. 

Blocking the Harbor. 

Another determined effort was made 
by the Japanese to block the harbor of 
Port Arthur May 3rd. It was the most 
desperate attempt of any which had 
been made with that object in view. 
Earlier attempts had been made under 
cover of darkness, but the volunteers 
who participated in the last one urged 
the privilege of going in the daylight, 
that being easier and giving greater 
chances of success. This was accord- 
ingly done, though the advantage was 
taken of a dense fog. Eighty fireships, 
armed with rapid fire guns, and each 
laden with stone and combustible, con- 
voyed by five torj)edo boats, composed 
the expedition. 

Four of the fireships were blown up 
by submarine mines and four by shells 
from the shore batteries or torpedoes 



440 



WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND JAPAN. 



from Russian torpedo boats. The Jap- 
anese claimed that five of the eight 
reached the desired place, and that the 
harbor was effectually blocked for any- 
thing larger than torpedo boats. The 
Russians claimed the channel was still 
clear. None of the larger boats were 
seen outside afterwards, and the Japan- 
ese immediately after this operation 
commenced the transportation of troops 
to parts on the L-iao-Tung peninsula. 

Victory for the Japanese. 

A three day's battle between the Rus- 
sian and Jupanese forces in the Liao- 
Tung peninsula, culminated on the 
15th in a decisive victory for the Jap- 
anese. The battle started in the vicinity 
ofVafango, some fifty -five miles north 
of Port Arthur, and ended at Telissu, 
twenty-five miles still further north, 
where a large force of Japanese flanked 
the retiring Russian army. The site 
of the battle was some hundred miles 
south of the location of General Kuro- 
patkin's main army near Liao-Yung. 
The Russian force under General Stakel- 
berg consisted of about 35,000 men, 
while the Japanese had a total of 
70,000. 

All accounts agree that the fighting 
was desperate and vigorous on both 
sides, and the defeated Russians showed 
as much valor and fighting qualities as 
the victorious Japanese. The Russian 
forces had been sent south, whether to 
attempt to relieve Port Arthur, or to 
meet a fourth Japanese army which was 
landing at the head of the Liao-Tung 
peninsula. They were evidently unpre- 
pared to find so large a force of the 
enemy, and the Japanese strategy was 
shown in concealing the strength of 
their force and in being able to throw a 



flanking force against the Russians in 
an unexpected position. As a result of 
this latter movement, the capture of 
Stakelberg's entire force was threatened. 
The Japanese took a long step 
towards Port Arthur on May 25th and 
26th, when they fought and won a ter- 
rific battle at Kin-Chau and drove the 
Russians from their strong defences on 
Nanshan Hill. This is the narrowest 
part of the Liao-Tung peninsula, and 
the Russians had selected it as the loca- 
tion of their first barrier in the defense 
of Port Arthur. The strategical advan- 
tages offered by nature were in com- 
mand of Russians, and these had been 
augmented in every way possible. En- 
trenchments, heavy guns, mines, miles 
of tangled barbed wire, were all in use, 
yet in spite of all these, the Japanese 
were victors. 

Lasted Sixteen Hours. 

The fight lasted sixteen hours on the 
26th. It was from no lack of valor or 
vigorous resistance on the part of the 
Russian troops that this was the case. 
The Japanese troops, utterly regardless 
of life, fraught with desperation in their 
assaults, only so that they attained the 
desired object. The storming of Nan- 
shan Hill was described as particularly 
thrilling and dramatic. Of course this 
method of attack called for heavy losses 
on the Japanese side. The victory 
opened up Dalny, on the shore of 
Talienwan Bay to the Japanese. The 
Russians had made hasty departure from 
this city, and though they had de- 
stroyed many of the docks and ware- 
houses there was much property of 
value found in the city. It made com- 
plete and more secure the close invest- 
ment of Port Arthur from the land side. 



WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND JAPAN. 



441 



The Russian Port Arthur fleet made 
a sortie from the harbor on June 23rci. 
The Japanese claim that they sunk a 
battleship and severely damaged a 
battleship and a cruiser. The sortie 
was a surprise, and while it ended in a 
Japanese success it was success over an 
enemy supposed to have been already 
rendered useless. The fact that the 
Russians were able to send out a fleet 
of six battleships and five cruisers, 
showed that the harbor was not seri- 
ously blocked and that the Port Arthur 
fleet still had to be reckoned with as a 
force of no mean quality. The asser- 
tion that the ships heretofore damaged 
had been fully repaired had been 
scouted, but their appearance out of the 
harbor was proof not to be denied. 
The Russian squadron succeeded in 
running the blockade and made excur- 
sions to sea. Four battleships, gun- 
boats, and torpedo boats were kept in 
the harbor, while two battleships, five 
cruisers and torpedo boats make excur- 
sions to sea. One torpedo boat suc- 
ceeded in making three trips to Yin- 
Kow. A number of junks loaded with 
fresh provisions succeeded in passing the 
Japanese blockading fleet, one junk 
landing five thousand sacks of flour. A 
cargo of coal was landed. 

Bloodiest Engagement. 

The most important engagement of 
the month, and the bloodiest of the 
war, was fought at Vafangow on 
June i6th, when the Japanese won 
a decided victory. The Russian loss 
exceeded 6,000. The purpose of the 
Russians was to force the Pitsewo — 
Polan Tien line, which forms the north- 
ern gate of the peninsula. The 
Russian fighting line consisted of 



twenty-five battalions of infantry and 
seventeen squadrons of cavalry with 
ninety-eight guns. Additions arrived 
later. A general advance was made, 
scaling the precipitous scarps and push- 
ing back the Japanese to Tafangshin. 

The latter, however, were reinforced 
by the arrival of new troops and this 
strengthening of their lines, supple- 
mented by timely movements of the 
cavalry, threatened the Russian left and 
rear and restored Japanese initiative so 
that the entire Japanese line gained 
ground simultaneously. At three o'clock 
in the afternoon the Russians begfan a 
retreat, which the Japanese withering 
fire converted into a rout, although the 
ground did not favor pursuit. 

Russian Losses. 

In another engagement on June 27th 
the Japanese routed 10,000 Russians, 
after severe fighting, at Fen-Shui Pass, 
twenty-five miles from Hai-Cheng. The 
position was an exeedingly strong one 
and dominated Shimn-Cheng road. In 
this engagement the Russian losses 
were again heavier than those of the 
Japanese. The Russians before retreat- 
ing burned their warehouses at Slian- 
Tasu. Two days later the Japanese 
forced the passage of the Mo-Tien Pass, 
fifty miles southeast of Liao-Yung, 
their object being to cut the Russian 
communication northward of Liao- 
Yung, while Kuropatkin was operating 
in the vicinity of Hai-Cheng with prac- 
tically all of the Russian forces. 

A big battle was fought on land near 
Port Arthur on June 26th and 27tli. 
The Japanese were successful and on 
the morning of the 28th occupied cer- 
tain heights within ten miles of Port 
Arthur. The two divisions which at- 



442 



WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND JAPAN. 



tacked Port Arthur were composed of 
40,000 men and an independent artillery 
corps. As a matter of precaution the 
Japanese landed a division of 10,000 
men on one of the Elliott group of 
islands, and on June 28th they landed 
the Sixth Division of 20,000 at Kerr 
Bay. 

The Elliott islands are about ten 
miles southeast of Pitsewo and about 
sixty-five miles northeast of Port Ar- 
thur, while Kerr Bay is about thirty-six 
miles from Port Arthur and six miles 
from Kin-Chou. These two divisions 
could be used to reinforce General Oku's 
army near Kai-Ping, on the west side of 
the lyiao-Tung peninsula and about forty 
miles south of Niu-Chwang, or the 
army of General Nogi before Port 
Arthur. 

Attack on the Ships. 

It was February 9th that Japan made 
its sudden and successful attack on the 
Russian ships at Port Arthur. During 
the six months following there was 
fighting, cruising, and watching, and 
the Japanese have gradually but surely 
reduced the fighting strength of the 
Russians. Japan had controlled the. 
Yellow and Japan seas, in the main, but 
in spite of all her successes there re- 
mained in the Port Arthur harbor a 
formidable fleet which had to be reck- 
oned with in Qny movement which the 
Japanese ships desired to make. There 
was also the Vladivostok squadron 
which had shown itself an effective and 
active force. 

Repeated efforts had been made to 
"bottle up" the Port Arthur ships so 
as to avoid the necessity of constant 
vigilance and preparation at the har- 
bor's mouth, and so, also, that these 



valuable engines of destruction would 
either have to be destroyed by the Rus- 
sians or would fall into the hands 
of the Japanese when the confi- 
dently expected fall of Port Arthur 
from the land attacks should occur; 
but these efforts had been unsuccessful, 
and Japan was not, therefore, the undis- 
puted master of those Eastern waters. 
On August loth she practically per- 
fected her title to that distinction. 

Desperate Move. 

On that day the Port Arthur fleet 
made a desperate effort to break through 
the Japanese cordon, with the purpose 
of reaching Vladivostok. It was almost 
a necessary move to take, as the con- 
stantly advancing land forces of the 
Japanese had reached points where they 
were able with their guns to make the 
harbor untenable. Six battleships, four 
cruisers, eight torpedo boats comprised 
the fleet that came out. Altogether of 
battleships, cruisers, and torpedo boats, 
largely the latter in number, there were 
forty-seven Japanese craft to give them 
battle. 

The Japanese let them get well out of 
the harbor and to the southward before 
attacking. Then they closed in and 
there was a fierce battle from ten o'clock 
in the morning until and into the night, 
with but brief interruption. The re- 
sult was most disastrous for the Rus- 
sians. 

On the 14th Admiral Kamimura's 
squadron of four cruisers, sailing south 
from the Korean coast, keeping watch 
for any of the Port Arthur fleet which 
might attempt to pass through the Ko- 
rean Strait in an eff'ort to reach 
Vladivostok, for any of the Vladivostok 
squadron which might endeavor to join 



WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND JAPAN. 



443 



the Port Arthur forces, sighted three 
of the enemy's cruisers. They proved 
to be the Rossia, Gromoboi, and Rurik, 
from Vladivostok. 

There was a long running fight, the 
Russians endeavoring to escape back to 
the northward, which resulted in the 
sinkingof the Rurik. The men on the 
Rurik fought desperately up to the 
very sinking of the vessel, and the 
other two, more speedy boats, did all 
that could be expected to save their 
weaker companion, but finally sailed 
away and reached Vladivostok with 
many marks of battle. Immediately 
after the sinking of the Rurik the Jap- 
anese boats, with many small craft 
which had arrived on the scene, turned 
into a life-saving crew, and six hun- 
dred Russians were rescued from the 
water. 

Bold Naval Dash. 

On July 20th the Vladivostok squad- 
ron passed through the Tsugarn Strait, 
north of the main island of Japan, and 
struck southward into the Pacific ocean, 
along the eastern coast of Japan and 
below Yokohama, and into the main 
road of Japanese commerce from the 
east. It was a bold dash, of a thousand 
miles from its base, with the chances 
of running across an enemy's fleet. But 
the Japanese cruisers were not drawn to 
the east of the islands, and the squadron 
returned safely after nine days. In this 
time they captured many trading ships 
and held up the entire commerce of the 
eastern coasts. 

To avoid a final assault on Port Ar- 
thur, the Japanese made proposals of 
surrender to General Stoessel, the com- 
mandant, allowing the troops to go north 
and join the forces of General Kuropatkin, 



but demanding the ships in the harbor. 
The proffer was indignantly refused. 
An offer to allow the non-combatants in 
the city to come out was also made. 
And this was rejected, possibly because 
there were really none or very few 
of that class remaining. There were 
nearly or quite 100,000 Japanese troops 
investing the place, with not more than 
one-seventh of that number of defenders. 
A number of regiments were detached 
from the northern armies to add to the 
besiegers ; and no matter what the cost 
might be, the Japanese were determined 
to have Port Arthur. 

Great Battle. 

The great battle of the war — that 
to which events pointed and towards 
which the armies for months was march- 
ing and maneuvering — was fought. 
I/iao-Yung was added to the list of the 
world's great battles. Estimated by the 
number of soldiers engaged and by the 
length of the contest, the battle of Liao- 
Yung must be called one of the greatest 
battles in history. The best accounts 
give a total on both sides of over 400,»- 
000. In but few instances in modern 
history has this number been equalled. 

After a defeat on August 2d, at Hai- 
Ching, the Russians retreated north- 
ward, and occupied the fortifications 
about lyiao-Yung. This is an important 
town about fifty miles north of Hai- 
Ching, thirty miles south of Mukden, 
and on the line of the railroad from 
Harbin to Port Arthur. Great labor 
had been expended on the fortifications 
about the town, and they were thought 
to be impregnable. The lines ran in a 
semi-circle along the ridges from eight 
to ten miles east and south of the town. 
Galleries protected the artillerymen and 



444 



WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND JAPAN. 



wire fences and mines were disposed to 
repel infantry attacks. All parts of the 
work were connected by telephone, and 
the forts were considered to be marvels 
of engineering skill. 

On such a field, so prepared. General 
Kuropatkin decided to halt and face his 
Japanese pursuers, and it might easily 
be thought that his many retreats had 
been, as sometimes intimated, merely 
for the purpose of "luring on" the 
enemy to a field of his own choice for a 
defeat which should be crushing. 

Heavy Fighting. 

On August 24th a general advance 
along the entire Japanese line was 
begun, and during August 25 and 26 
the fighting was heavy and continuous. 
Kuroki, whose first operations were di- 
rected at Liao-Dian-Sien, about twenty 
miles southeast of Liao-Yung, was suc- 
cessful in turning the Russian left and 
driving them from Anping, inflicting 
heavy losses. An-Shan-Shan, their 
strongest position on the south was 
evacuated under heavy pressure from 
Oku, and though Nodzu had not main- 
tained his position, the effect of the two 
days' fighting was to force the Russians 
back into the main defences about Liao- 
Yung. 

As soon as possible the Japanese fol- 
lowed up their successes and by August 
30 were in position to attack the new 
Russian line. Artillery had been brought 
up and the bombardment lasted from 
dawn till dark. This feature is described 
as being awful in its continual thunder 
and reverberations. Probably 1300 guns 
were engaged on both sides, and the 
firing was constant. There were fierce 
hand to hand fights also, the Russians 
repelling all attacks, and both sides 



suffering heavy losses. While the two 
other armies engaged the front Kuroki 
executed a flanking movement and 
threw his army across the Tai-tse river, 
some twenty miles east of Liao-Yung. 

This necessitated Kuropatkin taking 
a part of his army to the north side of 
the Tai-tse river, and sending it to 
meet and, if possible, crush Kuroki's 
brilliant flank movement. Kuropatkin's 
l^lans are said to have been excellent in 
this direction, his intention being to cut 
off Kuroki from the balance of the Jap- 
ance army, before they should discover 
his predicament and be able to help 
him. The Japanese, however, had a 
larger army across the river than was 
supposed, and they had advanced fur- 
ther to the north. 

A General Wounded. 

Fierce fighting took place September 
I and 2d, near the Yentai mines, but 
the superior force of the Japanese was 
victorious over the Russians under Gen- 
eral Orloflf, an army fresh from Europe. 
Orloff was wounded and some regiments 
lost over half their men. These opera- 
tions and the danger of the Japanese 
reaching the railroad and cutting off his 
communications with Mukden, com- 
pelled Kuropatkin to evacuate Liao- 
Yung. This was accomplished in good 
order, while a strong rear guard held 
the city fortifications. A double track 
railroad and two good roads afforded 
mediums for the retreat to Mukden. 

The Japanese occupied Liao-Yung on 
the evening of September 4th. They 
found a quantity of stores, though most 
of the supplies had been carried away, 
and many had been destroyed. In the 
crossing of the river. General Stakel- 
berg was left with 25,000 Russian sol- 



WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND JAPAN. 



445 



diers upon the south bank and to the 
east of Iviao-Yung. For a day or two it 
was thought he was cut off and liable 
to capture. Instead, he extricated him- 
self and aided in defeating Kuroki at 
Yentai. The Japanese to the east of 
the railroad made frequent attacks on 
the Russian rear guard, and it was con- 
stantly rumored that the Russians would 
be cut off from Mukden. But on Sep- 
tember 7th, Kuropatkin reported that 
his entire army had reached that city, 
without the loss of guns or supplies. 
Next to a victory, a successful retreat is 
considered to show good generalship, 
and it is acknowledged that Kuropat- 
kin' s retreat was masterly. 

Results of the Battle. 

The great battle on the Sahke river, 
which began October 9th by the ad- 
vance of General Kuropatkin, while in a 
sense a defeat for the Russians, the fact 
that they were enabled to prevent Mar- 
shal Oyama from reaping the full fruits 
of his victory, by safely withdrawing 
their shattered left wing and removing 
30,000 wounded from the field, made it 
somewhat of a drawn battle. Both 
armies strengthened their positions and 
filled up their ranks with fresh troops. 
The Japanese had over 60,000 reinforce- 
ments. The Japanese threw up exten- 
sive intrenchments, in some cases pre- 
paring two lines of these. 

The two armies were, in some portions 
of their line, so close together that the 
same small village would be occupied by 
both, and the same spring furnish water 
for the opposing outposts. There were 
some heavy artillery duels and some 
brisk fights among advance posts, but 
no general engagement. Lone Tree 
Hill, which appeared as an important 



point in the Sahke battleground, and 
had been in the hands of both armies, 
remained with the Russians, giving 
them a great advantage in that locality. 
On November lOth the Japanese as- 
sumed the offensive on the left bank of 
the Hun, but were driven back to their 
original lines. On the nth they made 
a vigorous artillery attack, but made no 
advance. 

The Russian front extended over a dis- 
tance of eighty miles, and they were 
confident their army was so disposed as 
to prevent a disaster of any magnitude. 
On October 2Sth an imperial ukase was 
issued making General Kuropatkin 
commander-in-chief of the army in 
Manchuria. Alexeieff was retained as 
Viceroy, but was immediately ordered 
to St. Petersburg. 

Heavy Losses. 

The loss of the Russians during the 
operations October 9th to 21st, were 
given as 800 officers and .:^ 5,000 men, 
killed, wounded and missing. This 
was a statement of the Russian General 
Staff". The Japanese estimated the total 
casualties of the Russians as 60,000. 
They claimed to have found 13^ S3 3 
dead in various parts of the field. They 
took 709 prisoners, and a great quantity 
of arms and munitions. 

The greatest interest centered around 
Port Arthur, which was repeatedly re- 
ported as on the point of falling. After 
a period of comparative quiet and prep- 
aration, an assault was commenced on 
October 24th which developed into a 
fierce battle on the 30th. On that day 
the Japanese made an attack on the 
eastern ridge, and gained the moats of 
the principal forts assailed. The as- 
sault, however, was a failure as the 



446 



WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND JAPAN. 



Russians were enabled to drive them 
back from the hill. The Japanese how- 
ever, drew nearer to the center of the 
Russian position by means of mines. 

The Russian Baltic fleet at last 
started on its long journey to the Far 
East, having left Libau on October i6th. 
The fleet consisted of seven battleships, 
six large cruisers, eight torpedo boat 
destroyers and several transports, the 
total being more than thirty ships. It 
was this formidable craft that attacked 
the British fishing boats in the North 
Sea, which for a time threatened serious 
consequences. The fleet left Vigo, 
Spain, on November 1st, continuing its 
journey toward the Orient, a part going 
by way of the Suez canal and the re- 
mainder around the Cape of Good Hope. 
On November i6th the second division 
of the Baltic fleet, consisting of four 
cruisers, two auxiliary cruisers, and five 
torpedo boat destroyers, left Libau for 
the same destination. 

Fierce Assaults. 

General Nogi was ordered to renew 
his attacks on Port Arthur during the 
last week in November, and to capture 
the main fortifications at any cost. As- 
saults with this object in view were 
made on the 2ist and 26th, but they were 
unsuccessful, and announcement was 
made from Japanese headquarters to 
that effect. On the 27th, the Japanese 
gained a notable advantage in the cap- 
ture of 203-Meter Hill. This was one 
of the high points from which the guns 
could reach the town and harbor. The 
struggle for this hill was one of the 
most desperate of the war on both sides. 
It began shortly after noon of the 27th. 
After heavy and concentrated bombard- 
ment, four charges were made between 



three and four o'clock. The last one 
was successful in dislodging the defend- 
ers, but during the night the Russians 
made three counter attacks and drove 
out the Japanese forces. 

At daylight next morning the Japan- 
ese returned to the attack, and at eight 
P. M- that night, after a series of rushes 
and counter-rushes, advances and re- 
pulses, the Japanese again occupied the 
fortress. It was not until noon of De- 
cember I that the Russians finally gave 
up their attacks on this hill and retired 
to inner positions. The losses on both 
sides were extremely heavy and 01,' 
December 2 the first armistice between 
the armies at Port Arthur was arranged 
for the burial of the dead and the re- 
moval of the wounded. It lasted from 
ten in the morning until four in the 
afternoon. 

Warships Bombarded. 

While great importance was attached 
to the capture of 203-Meter Hill (called 
Visokaia by the Russians), it was one of 
the outer line of defences, and the inner 
line, with the strong permanent forts, 
was still in possession of the defenders. 
Golden Hill and Lianio Hill are higher 
also. The possession of 203-Meter Hill 
was used to great advantage by the Jap- 
anese. Heavy naval guns were mount- 
ed there, and from the 3d to the 9th 
a heavy bombardment of the warships 
in the harbor was kept up. Previously 
the boats had found shelter from the 
Japanese fire behind Pei-ya mountain. 

This they were now unable to do, and 
by the i2th the Japanese commander 
reported that there was no further need 
of bombarding the harbor, as all of the 
ships there were completely disabled. 
This was supposed to include four war- 



WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND JAPAN, 



447 



ships, two cruisers, one gunboat and 
one torpedo storeship. The battleship 
Sevastapol was moved into the outer 
harbor, and was made the target for 
many and desperate night and day at- 
tacks by the torpedo fleet outside. It 
was not sunk, but was considered prac- 
tically useless. 

Occasional news came of the progress 
of the two divisions of the Russian fleet 
proceeding to the East. The Suez canal 
section passed through the Red Sea, and 
that going by way of Cape of Good 
Hope was well down the African coast. 
It is noticeable that the ships stopped 
only at French ports to coal. 

Downfall of Port Arthur. 

"Great sovereign, pardon us. We 
have done all that is within human 
power. Judge us with clemency." 
These were th^ closing words of the 
dispatch in which General Stoessel, the 
commander of Port Arthur, announced 
the surrender of that fortress. It sounds 
more like a suppliant criminal making 
a plea for his life than a great general 
who bravely bore his part in announc- 
ing the disastrous but inevitable end of 
his long and heroic struggle. 

" Port Arthur has fallen." This mes- 
sage so long anticipated was the first 
important a. mouncement which the New 
Year had to make to the world. After 
a defence exceeded in length but by 
few in the history of war, the much- 
vaunted "Gibraltar of the East "— 
deemed almost impregnable — fell before 
the persistent, determined, bold and 
skillful attacks of the Japanese. 

This was the second time Japan has 
captured Port Arthur, but the task, 
ten years before, when the Chinese held 
the illy-prepared forts, was but child's 



play and a summer pastime compared 
with the struggle now ended. Since 
the fortress has been isolated by both 
land and sea, its fall was looked upon 
as a foregone conclusion by the out- 
side world. There was no probability 
of outside succor. 

The Surrender. 

The many details attending the sur- 
render were carried out without appar- 
rent friction. Japanese troops entered 
the city on the 4th, and on the 5th the 
opposing commanders met at the only 
undamaged house remaining in the 
neighboring village of Shuishi, and this 
a miserable hovel. Each recognized in 
the other a brave man and a good sol- 
dier, and the exchange of courtesies was 
more than cordial, even if solemn. On 
the 13th, there was a triumphal entry 
into the city, participated in by detach- 
ments from all the regiments. The 
line was five miles long, and was re- 
viewed by General Nogi. 

What emotions must have filled every 
brown breast, as they marched peace- 
fully and victorious by the forts which 
so lately had offered them only a deadly 
welcome. Conditions in the besieged 
town were evidently much better than 
vagrant reports had led the world to be- 
lieve. The old or Chinese town had 
suffered badly from the bombardment, 
but the new Russian town had largely 
escaped. There was no evidence of starv- 
ation among the inhabitants. That the 
defence was exhausted was by no means 
apparent. Some kinds of ammunition 
were low, but there was food sufficient 
for two months. Fifteen hundred horses 
were among the captured spoils. About 
half of the oflScers accepted parol. 
General Stoessel among them. 



